


Our True Love

by adreamersimagination



Category: Dawson's Creek
Genre: Angst, Drama, Fluff, Multi, One True Pairing, Pacey Witter is the best of all time, Pacey and Joey forever, Romance, True Love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:09:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 59,930
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28396695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adreamersimagination/pseuds/adreamersimagination
Summary: What happens between Pacey and Joey's conversation in the kitchen and them sitting together in New York?A love story on rekindling love and discovering the real meaning of True Love.
Relationships: Joey Potter/Pacey Witter
Comments: 57
Kudos: 97





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone!  
> This is my first ever Dawson's Creek story and it's of course Pacey and Joey, because who else? This will be a story on the two rediscovering their love and navigating their relationship as adults. It will be a multi-chapter story and lots of familiar faces will make appearances! I hope you all enjoy!

_You’re off the hook._  
_I’m determined to be happy, Joey._  
_It’s just that the simple act of being in love with you is enough for me._

It was dark as Joey walked along the sidewalk and let the words float through her head for what felt like the hundredth time. She found herself wandering towards the marina and the let the sounds of the water wash over her. She wrapped her arms around her stomach and leaned against the railing in front of her. With her eyes closed, Joey took a deep breath. Her emotions were all over the place and she was so desperate for answers. In her heart, she knew that she was the only one who could answer the questions but she desperately wished Jen was here to help her. She would give anything to have the fierce blonde tell her what to do.  


Deep in her gut, Joey knew what she needed to do. She knew what she wanted to do. She wanted to run to The Ice House and throw her arms around Pacey. She wanted to feel his comfort and his love. Joey wanted to move forward and she wanted to do it with him by her side. She spent so much time and energy running. Joey honestly didn’t know any other way. She ran to Dawson, she ran to Eddie, she ran to Christopher. Joey ran to Paris and Boston and then New York. She constantly chose the safe option because it was easier, it couldn’t hurt her. If there was no risk, then there would be no pain in the end.  


Was that how Joey wanted to keep living her life? Did she want to keep living a half-life because she was afraid of being hurt? What kind of life was that? Joey knew that wasn’t a life at all. She kept making excuses for not going after what she wanted. She kept letting her fear dictate her. It cost her so much already in her life. She could have been living her life with the love of her life the last five years if she hadn’t run from him on that cold night at a school dance. Joey shook her head and ran her fingers through her hair, shaking away the regret. She couldn’t keep living in the past if she wanted a future to work.  


With one final look at the water, Joey pushed herself off the railing. There was only one place she needed to be right now. There was only one person she needed to see right now. Joey walked in the direction of The Ice House, determined to right all of her wrongs. 

_I can’t be let off the hook because I might just get the notion that it’s okay to keep running._  
_Pacey, I love you._  
_For the record, I don’t want to be let off the hook._

Pacey dropped the dough onto the counter and then proceeded to kneed it. He hummed along to the music on the radio and tried to let himself get distracted in his baking. He realistically knew that the restaurant didn’t need more fresh bread but he couldn’t help himself. Sleep was so far off his radar right now and he really didn’t want to be alone in his empty apartment. He would spend far too much time thinking and overanalyzing everything. His head was already aching and he didn’t need to add to the headache.  


Taking a sip of his beer, Pacey looked down at his hands that were covered in flour. Joey’s words and soft voice swirled around in his head. If he thought he had been confused by her in the past that was nothing compared to what he was feeling right now. He had been sure of what her response would be. Pacey thought with complete certainty that she was going to smile and politely thank him. She would make some sarcastic comment to ease the tension and then rush out of the kitchen, leaving him to deal with his feelings.  


Pacey was not expecting the response he had gotten in return. He had always known Joey loved him, of course he did. Even during their lowest and darkest times, Pacey never doubted Joey’s love for him. He had been the first person she ever truly let herself be completely herself with and he knew that meant something to Joey. He also knew how much fear crippled her. The fear of the unknown, the fear of what her feelings truly meant, and the fear of truly needing someone else. Joey hated depending on other people and Pacey was someone she needed, whether she would admit it or not.  


After their unsuccessful attempt of getting back together in college, Pacey started to believe that maybe their time had truly run out. He feared that maybe there really was no hope for them, and that thought alone was devastating. After her speech that night, Pacey could’ve just walked away. He could’ve accepted defeat and taken the heartbreaking loss but he didn’t. Somewhere deep in his broken heart, he knew that their story wasn’t over. Pacey knew it was her fear talking and when she broke up with Eddie not even two weeks later, he believed that somewhere down the line the two would reconnect again. Pacey knew that Joey was the one for him and he believed fates would bring them together again.  


But as the years went by, Pacey wondered if it was time to throw in the towel. He tried to move on but Audrey had been right all those years ago. He was unable to fully commit to someone else because his heart hadn’t been his own since he was seventeen years old. Joey had stolen his heart from him years ago and he wasn’t sure he would ever be able to get it back, or if he even wanted to.  


A knock at the front of the restaurant startled him from his thoughts and he checked the watch on his wrist. It was close to eleven-thirty and the restaurant had been closed for well over an hour now. Pacey wiped off his hands and headed towards the front of the restaurant. His pace slowed down when he saw the person standing outside. Pacey unlocked the door and opened the door.  


“Hey,” Pacey held the door open and smiled softly.  


“Hi,” Joey’s eyes softened at the sight of him and she smiled.  


“What are you doing here, Jo?”  


“I was wandering around and saw a light still on,” Joey nervously fumbled with her shirt and chewed on her bottom lip. “I was hoping it would be you.”  


“I sent everyone else home an hour ago,” Pacey said. The two stood there silently for a minute, just staring at the other, and then he stepped back. “Do you want to come in?”  


“I’d like that,” Joey nodded. Pacey stepped aside to let her in and then locked the door behind them.  


“Can I get you something to drink?” Pacey asked and then gestured towards the bar. “I have just about everything.”  


“Sure,” Joey followed him towards the bar. She slid onto one of the bar stools and he walked around the bar.  


“Wine?” Pacey asked, remembering that she had a couple glasses of red wine the other night when they all caught up. He felt a sharp pain in his chest as he remembered Jen’s smiling face and a sudden rush of sadness crept up on him.  


“Yeah,” she nodded. Pacey blinked back the tears that pricked his eyes and grabbed a bottle. Joey watched the way he effortlessly moved around and how at ease he looked. 

“I’m proud of you, Pace.”  


“Huh?” Pacey looked over, startled by her sudden praise.  


“This place, your life. Pace, it’s incredible. I know we already talked about it but I’m so in awe of how incredible you’ve done for yourself. You really made something of yourself,” Joey said. The man standing in front of her certainly wasn’t the slacker seventeen year old. This was a man who defied all the odds stacked against him and came out stronger.  


“It’s-,” Pacey started to say as he put the glass down in front of her but she wouldn’t let him finish.  


“If you say it’s nothing then I will be forced to be that stereotypical girl in the bar that throws a drink in your face,” Joey shot him a look and he chuckled.  


“Fair enough, Potter,” he nodded. Pacey watched her take a sip of the wine and pondered the last few days.  


“What’s on your mind?” Joey asked, noticing the far off look on his face.  


“I’m just thinking about the last few days,” Pacey rested his forearms on the bar and leaned forward. “I have these moments where I want to pick up the phone to talk to Jen but then I remember that I can’t.”  


“I can’t believe she’s gone,” Joey whispered. “I spent so many years fighting off her friendship because of stupid reasons. I would do anything to get those years back so I could fix it.”  


“Lindley knew you loved her. She knew how much she meant to you and wouldn’t want you to think that,” Pacey reached over and squeezed her hand. Joey felt her heart race at the warm feeling that shot through her body from the comfort of his hand.  


“There’s a lot I wish I could do over,” she admitted.  


“Jo,” he whispered.  


“We never finished our conversation, Pace.”  


“Timing still seems to not be on our side, does it?” Pacey chuckled but the weight of his words lingered between them.  


“I meant what I said,” Joey said. She looked down at where his hand was resting on her own. “I don’t want to be let off the hook.”  


“I don’t want you to think I was pressuring you into making some decision. That wasn’t my intention, Jo.”  


“I had a conversation with Jen in the hospital,” Joey continued on. She traced her finger over his palm and heard his intake of breath. “We were talking about Dawson’s show and I told her I was fresh out of conflict. I told her that it was sad that a television show made me see what was right in front of me the entire time.”  


“What do you mean?” Pacey furrowed his brows.  


“I’ve always known who I was supposed to be with, Pace. I may get scared and I may run but I know my heart. It’s stubborn and scared but it’s always been a fixed point,” Joey said. Pacey smiled softly at that. He felt his heart start to race as he listened to her. “It’s always been you, Pace. Since the moment you kissed me on the side of the road and probably even before that.”  


“Jo,” her name was a breathless whisper and he felt those all too familiar butterflies swarming around in his stomach.  


“I love you, Pacey Witter. I have loved you for a very long time and I’m starting to think it’s never going to go away,” Joey said. Tears pricked her eyes and she saw him swallow hard.  


“Starting to, huh?” Pacey teased, his voice full of emotion. She chuckled softly and watched as he walked around the bar. Pacey stopped when he was standing next her and wiped the tears from her cheeks with the pads of his thumbs. Joey closed her eyes at his touch and rested her hands on his own, holding them to her cheeks. “You know how I feel, Jo. You’ve always known. Even when I tried not to love you, I still loved you.”  


“You once told me that you thought this could be it for us,” Joey said. She saw the pain from that night flash quickly through his eyes. She knew that was a conversation they would eventually need to have, a conversation where she needed to make him understand her actions, but tonight wasn’t that night. Tonight was about the now and the future. 

“You were right, Pace. I think this is it for us. I think we are it.”  


“You do?” Pacey looked into her brown eyes and saw nothing but sincerity there. He had waited years to hear her say that and he almost couldn’t believe it was finally happening. If this was a dream, he didn’t ever want to be woken up.  


“I do,” she nodded. “I want this, Pacey. I want you. I want you today, I want you tomorrow, and I want you every day after. I don’t want to run from my feelings anymore. I don’t want to be afraid of what they mean. I’ve wasted too much time being afraid and running from the one person who makes me the happiest.”  


“We’re probably going to fight a lot,” Pacey ran his thumbs across her cheekbones.  


“Oh absolutely,” Joey nodded as she slid her hands up his arms to rest on his shoulders.  


“And I still have Pop Tarts and coffee pretty much every morning for breakfast,” Pacey tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.  


“I can introduce you to the concept of adult breakfast,” Joey tugged on his earlobes.  


“I hate doing laundry.”  


“I’m still stubborn.” Joey licked her lips and lowered her eyes to look at his lips.  


“I go days without shaving,” Pacey stepped closer to her.  


“Lucky for you, I’ve had practice shaving before.”  


“And-,” Pacey started but she interrupted him.  


“Pace?”  


“Yeah?”  


“Just kiss me already.”  


Pacey smirked but it slowly slipped of his face as he moved his lips closer to hers. Joey wrapped hers completely around his shoulders and her chest heaved in anticipation. Pacey’s lips touched hers, gently at first, and they both sighed at the feeling. Then his fingers buried themselves in her hair as the kiss deepened and she tugged him closer to her. The spark that was always there between them intensified and it felt like fireworks exploded in their chests. Their lips moved in sync and their tongues battled for dominance. It was the most incredible feeling in the world and nothing had ever felt more right to either of them.  


Pacey pulled back first and looked at Joey. Her face was flushed red and her chest was heaving, much like his own. Her swollen lips were still puckered and her eyes were closed. Pacey couldn’t help himself, he leaned forward and pressed another kiss to her lips and felt her smile as he did. This time she pulled away and their eyes locked, a smile on both of their faces.  


“I love you,” Pacey sounded breathless and his heart pounded in his chest.  


“I love you,” Joey pressed her forehead against his and their eyes closed.  


They both knew that the road wasn’t always going to be easy for them, but it would be worth it. Pacey and Joey both knew that their love would always be worth it.


	2. Chapter 2

“You were really holding out on me in high school, Witter. If I knew you could make an omelet this delicious then I would’ve never cooked for you,” Joey said before stuffing another piece into her mouth.  


“I could barely make a piece of toast in high school,” Pacey laughed. “What makes you think I was hiding this secret talent from you?”  


“So you really learned all of this from Danny?” Joey asked.  


“Man was an ass but he sure could cook,” Pacey nodded. He gestured around his empty restaurant and then shrugged. “I’m not sure if any of this would be possible if it wasn’t for his teaching.”  


“You would’ve found your way here eventually,” she insisted.  


“I had some pretty crappy bosses in Boston,” he twirled the coffee cup around in his hands.  


“I don’t think anyone tops Rich,” Joey shuttered as she recalled his perverted boss at the firm.  


Definitely not,” he shook his head. “It’s probably why I decided it was time to become my own boss.”  


“You just wanted the power to make your staff wear those neon Hawaiian shirts,” Joey teased.  


“They are stylish!” Pacey playfully glared at her.  


“They are something,” she giggled. She looked at the watch on her wrist and realized it was close to nine. “What time does your staff start to show up?”  


“Ten-thirty,” Pacey said. “We don’t open until noon so I don’t need them that early. That doesn’t stop Hank though. He’ll probably be here within the next twenty minutes.”  


“What does Hank do?” Joey asked. She was incredibly curious about his business and all the details that made the man in front of her.  


“He’s my head chef. He’s about sixty years and has been a chef since before I was even born. He moved to Capeside about four years ago,” Pacey said. She saw the almost sad look on his face and frowned, knowing this was going to be a sad story. “His wife died four years ago. They had been together since they were sixteen years old. They didn’t have any children, so it’s just him. They lived in Boston and he said the big city was just too much for him and everything there reminded him of her.”  


“How did she die?” Joey asked. She felt an immense amount of sadness for the man she had never met. She could tell how much he meant to Pacey and that he genuinely cared for the older man.  


“Cancer,” Pacey sighed. “I think it was ovarian. She had been battling it from a really young age and that’s why they never had any children of their own.”  


“That’s really sad,” Joey swallowed a lump. She reached across the table and laced her fingers through Pacey’s. He squeezed her hand and smiled softly.  


“He said that she was all he ever needed. She was his best friend and the love of his life. He never needed anything else in life to be happy,” Pacey traced one of her fingers with the tip of his finger before moving on to the next one. He looked up into her teary eyes and squeezed her fingers. “And now he has an entire staff that act like his children and pester him for stories all the times. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to remind them to get back to work and stop pestering Hank.”  


“And are you included in that group that pester him for stories?” Joey lifted an eyebrow.  


“I am a professional, Josephine Potter. I am insulted by the insinuation!” Pacey flicked a sugar packet at her and she gasped.  


“Oh, so professional Pace,” she tossed a sugar packet and giggled when it hit him right in the chest.  


“You’re gonna pay for that,” Pacey smirked. She saw that all too familiar gleam in his eyes and quickly scooted back in her chair.  


Joey was quick to jump out of her chair and rush in the direction of the bar. She saw Pacey hot on her heels and rushed around to the other side of the bar. He stopped on the opposite side of the bar right in front of her and kinked an eyebrow at her. She playfully glared at him and peeked her tongue out between her teeth, knowing full well the effect this had on him. Joey saw the desire quickly fill his eyes and blushed. It had been so long since someone looked at her with that much passion in their eyes. The atmosphere in the restaurant went from playful to passionate in a matter of seconds.  


Pacey slowly moved around the bar and Joey watched his every move. Their eye contact never broke and her heart pounded in her chest. She licked her lips as he got closer and it felt like everything around them disappeared. How had she lived so long without this man? How did she ever think she could be happy with anyone but him? Pacey stopped right in front of her and his hands rested on her waist. She clutched the sides of his arms, and closed her eyes in anticipation of his lips. She felt his breath on her neck.  


“Jo?” Pacey’s voice was right at her ear and it made her shiver. Goosebumps filled her arms and her toes curled.  


“Hmm?” Joey mumbled, her eyes still closed in anticipation.  


“Gotcha,” Pacey pecked her cheek and then it happened before Joey could stop him. His fingers started to tickle her sides and she let out a shriek.  


“Pacey!” Joey giggled and clutched his arms as he tickled her sides. She tried to move his hands away but he wouldn’t budge. Her laughter was so contagious, that soon Pacey was laughing along with her. “Pacey! Stop it, Pacey!”  


“Stop it?” Pacey repeated, his voice teasing. She buried her face in his chest, giggling, and then his fingers finally stopped their assault on her sensitive sides.  


“That wasn’t very nice of you, Witter.” Joey tried to glare at him but his giant grin made it difficult. He looked so happy and so carefree that she took a mental picture so that she could always remember him looking at her this way. So she could carry it with her wherever she went and add it to her good mood pill collection.  


“Do you want me to kiss it all better?” Pacey wrapped his arms around her waist, tugging her closer to him.  


“And what makes you think I’m going to let you kiss me right now?” Joey raised an eyebrow as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Her fingers started to play with his hair and she relished the feel of his soft hair between her fingers.  


“Because you can’t resist me,” Pacey licked his lips. His thumbs massaged her lower back and pulled her even closer to him.  


“Is that right?”  


"So right.”  


Joey was about to retort but he didn’t let her. His lips collided with hers and she gasped in surprise. She buried her fingers into his hair and pressed her body completely against his. If she thought the kiss from the night before was amazing, it was nothing compared to this one. This one was full of the familiar love and tenderness that had always been there between them. She could feel Pacey’s love for her by the movement of his lips and the way his tongue caressed her own. She could feel the passion from the roots of her hair, straight down to her toes. Her body felt so alive and she never wanted to lose this feeling again. She vowed to herself that she was never going to let him get away again.  


“Well don’t let me interrupt,” a voice startled the two. Pacey and Joey jumped apart like two teenagers and she ran her fingers through her hair. They looked over and saw the amused look on Jack’s face.  


“Jack, hi!” Joey blushed and chewed on her bottom lip.  


“This feels eerily familiar,” Jack crossed his arms and looked between the two.  


“What are you doing here?” Pacey asked, running his fingers through his hair. He had wanted to talk to Joey first before they told everyone about them but that was clearly not in the cards. Somehow things never worked out the way they planned.  


“I was hoping that you would make those mashed potatoes that Amy loves so much,” Jack explained. “I tried to get Doug to make them and well, let’s just say that didn’t go well.”  


“What did he do?” Pacey narrowed his eyes.  


“He burned them,” Jack shook his head. “He was sure that they wouldn’t burn while he deep cleaned the bathroom and he was wrong.”  


“How is Amy?” Joey asked. Jack walked over to take a seat on one of the stools in front of the stool and accepted the cup of coffee Pacey offered him.  


“She randomly asks for Jen,” he choked on her name but quickly cleared his throat. “But we distract her enough so she doesn’t cry when she realizes that she’s not there.”  


“And how are you?” Joey reached over and rested her hand on his.  


“I have my moments,” he shrugged. “It hits me pretty hard sometimes but Amy does a great job at distracting me. I miss her like crazy and would do anything to bring her back.”  


“We all would,” Pacey nodded.  


“I know,” Jack nodded and shrugged. “I just have to live the life that Jen would want me to. I have to keep moving forward for her.”  


“We all do,” Joey said. She knew that her blonde friend was always going to be watching over them and would like to believe that she would guide them like she would have if she was still here.  


“And speaking of moving forward,” Jack looked between the two of them before taking a sip of his coffee. “What’s going on with you two? I noticed the change in subjects. Lay it on me.”  


“We are exploring things,” Pacey said. Jack shot him a bewildered look.  


“Exploring things?” Jack repeated. “I don’t think there are two people in this world that know each other better than you two do.”  


“Jack,” Joey giggled.  


“Well for what it’s worth, I approve. I also know for a fact that Jen would approve. She was always going on about how annoying you two were, avoiding your feelings and pretending they didn’t exist.” Jack said. Joey and Pacey shared a look and felt their hearts ache. Jen had always been their biggest supporter and confidant from the very start of their relationship. They wished she could be there now to see them making it work.  


“We are going to make it work this time,” Pacey insisted. Joey bit her lip and smiled softly. “No more running and no more avoiding. This time it’s for keeps.”  


“Good,” Jack nodded. “We all deserve a little happiness in our lives and I’ve never seen either of you happier than when you were together.”  


“The same could be said about you and Dougie,” Pacey said with a pointed look.  


“That man is a stubborn one,” Jack mumbled but smiled behind his coffee mug.  


“It’s a Witter thing,” Joey said.  


“I resent that!” Pacey shot her a look. “I’m not stubborn.”  


“And I’m not gay,” Jack rolled his eyes. Pacey’s jaw dropped and Joey giggled. “Are you still taking Amy on Saturday?”  


“Of course,” Pacey nodded. “I won’t ever miss a Saturday.”  


“Alright,” Jack stood up and looked at his best friends. “I need to get back to Grams.”  


“I’ll bring the mashed potatoes over later on,” Pacey said.  


“I appreciate it,” Jack nodded. The two shook hands and then Jack leaned over to kiss Joey on the cheek before leaving the two of them alone.  


“What’s on Saturday?” Joey asked once they were alone again. She rested her hip on the bar and looked over at Pacey. He turned his body so that he could completely face her.  


“I made Jen a promise while she was in the hospital. She was terrified about leaving Amy alone and I promised her that I would never let that happen. I told her that every Saturday she would spend with her Uncle Pacey,” Pacey explained. Joey’s eyes softened and she stepped closer to him, wrapping her arms around his waist.  


“I love you,” Joey whispered. Pacey tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and smiled softly.  


“I love you too,” Pacey pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose before moving lower to her lips. He was certain that he would never be able to get enough of her kisses. Now that he had her back, he was going to make up for all the lost time.  


  
  


Pacey stuffed his hands into his pockets and slowly made his way through backyard. He looked up at the house that he had spent the majority of his childhood at. It was the house where he spent hours, watching movies and then analyzing them. It was the one place that always felt more like home to him than his own home. The inside of the house held warm and loving memories but it was the backyard that haunted him. The backyard where his best friend found out about his new relationship and wrote him off. The backyard where he watched his best friend once again end their friendship but this time over money.  


He was determined to do things right this time. Before Pacey could move forward with his relationship with Joey, he wanted to talk to Dawson. He didn’t think he owed him that but it didn’t matter. Pacey, Joey, and Dawson had come a long way in their friendship. They had worked so hard to move past the pain and resentment of the past. If Pacey and Joey had any chance of lasting long term, he was going to do things right this time. Pacey was determined to handle things the way that he should have their junior year. As he was about to knock on the door, he heard footsteps behind him.  


“Pace?” Dawson asked. Pacey spun around and saw the blonde standing there, his hands stuffed in his pockets and a curious look on his face.  


“Hey Dawson,” Pacey said.  


“What are you doing here?” Dawson asked. There was nothing unkind about his statement, just genuine curiosity.  


“I was hoping to talk to you,” Pacey said.  


"Yeah of course,” Dawson nodded. He gestured towards the picnic benches and then the two hopped up on top of them. They looked out at the creek as a comfortable silence washed over them. “It feels like just yesterday the two of us were getting ready to go camping for the first time.”  
“

We were like eight, weren’t we?”  


“Yeah,” Dawson nodded. “Your dad insisted that Doug come with us and you wanted no part of it.”  


“I told Doug that I would fill his sleeping bag with bugs every chance I got if he came,” Pacey laughed. “I knew there was no way he would want to come after that threat. He has always hated bugs.”  


“So the two of us camped out in my backyard instead so that we had adult supervision,” Dawson laughed.  


“Leave it to my dad to ruin the whole trip. Guy barely payed attention to me until I wanted to do something fun then he was father of the year,” Pacey rolled his eyes and shook his head. “When do you head back to California?”  


“Friday,” Dawson said. “My phone hasn’t stopped ringing and they are demanding an ending to the script by the end of the day.”  


“You’ll figure it out. You always do,” Pacey said.  


“Joey said something very similar,” Dawson said. He noticed Pacey tense up at the mention of Joey and fought the smirk. He had a pretty good idea what Pacey wanted to talk about from the moment he spotted him in his backyard. He would’ve had to be blind to not see the sparks that flew between him and Joey at his mom’s wedding and even the night before that.  


“That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about,” Pacey said and scratched back of his neck nervously. He took a deep breath and then turned to face Dawson. “Well not your script, but Joey.”  


“What about her?”  


“I love her, man. You know I love her, I think the whole world knows I love her. I always have and I always will,” Pacey said. He felt a warm feeling in his stomach as he thought about Joey. He suddenly wanted this conversation to be over so that he could go and find her. He couldn’t get enough of the beautiful brunette.  


“I know you do, Pace. I know she feels the same way too,” Dawson said. He thought it would hurt a lot more hearing those words but he realized how far they had all come. Instead of hiding it from him, Pacey was coming to him with his feelings. He was being honest and open, something that Dawson respected immensely.  


“We want to give it another try. The two of us are finally in a place where we are ready to be together for real,” Pacey explained. He let his eyes take in Dawson’s facial expressions and didn’t see any malice or resentment, just a smile. He would be lying if he said the smile didn’t surprise him but he was grateful for it. “I’m not here to ask your permission, because I don’t think I need it, but I am here out of respect to you. I wanted to tell you man to man this time around instead of sneaking around behind your back. I’m not going to hide our relationship.”  


“And you shouldn’t have to.”  


“I know how much you mean to Jo. I know how important your friendship is to her. Quite honestly, our friendship is incredibly important to me too. It took us this long to get it back and I’d like to think we’ve outgrown all of that petty love triangle stuff,” Pacey shrugged.  


“Well, you’re right about one thing. You don’t need my permission. Joey is her own person who makes her own decisions,” Dawson said. “But if I was to give an opinion on this, I’d say she made the right choice.”  


“You would?” Pacey widened his eyes in surprise. He wasn’t sure what he had been expecting but that certainly wasn’t it.  


“Joey and I have tried. It took me this long to finally realize that it never worked because it was never meant to be. Joey and I will have always a unique bond but it’s purely friendship. There’s no romance between us. We just tried to force something that wasn’t supposed to be,” Dawson said. “You are the ones that are meant to be. You always have been.”  


“I’m not going to lie to you,” Pacey chuckled. “I was not expecting that.”  


“Just make her happy, Pace. I want nothing more in this world than to see my two best friends finally be happy,” Dawson said.  


“I will, Dawson. I will do whatever I have to do to make her happy,” Pacey promised. Dawson smiled because he knew just how accurate that statement was. He knew that Pacey would do whatever he had to for Joey’s happiness.  


  
  


"Where were you?” Joey asked when she saw Pacey walk into his office. He looked up and saw her sitting at his desk, drawing something on a piece of scrap paper on his desk.  


“Did they just let you into my office?” Pacey raised an amused eyebrow.  


“I can be quite persuasive when I want to be,” she smirked and he laughed. “So? Where were you?”  


“At Dawson’s,” Pacey walked around and perched on the edge of his desk so that he was right next to her.  


“Dawson’s?” Joey asked. “Why?”  


“I was doing what I should have done junior year,” Pacey said. Joey’s eyes softened and she felt a rush of love for him shoot through her body. It was another one of those little gestures that made her realize how different their relationship was this time. It showed her just how much they had grown from those insecure teenagers.  


“And?”  


“And he’s happy for us,” Pacey said. Joey smiled at the happy look on his face and reached over to grab his hand. He laced their fingers together and pressed a kiss to the back of her hand. Butterflies immediately swarmed her stomach.  


“I told you it would be different this time,” Joey said softly. “We are different this time.”  


“I was thinking,” Pacey traced circles with his thumb around the back of her hand and nudged her knee with his own.  


“Uh oh, that’s never good.” Joey teased and playfully winced.  


“Cute,” Pacey deadpanned and she giggled.  


“What were you thinking?” Joey asked.  


“I was thinking that I’d like to take you out on a date,” Pacey said. Joey’s face broke out in a huge grin, which caused him to smile wide. "br/>

“A date, huh?”  


“A real date,” Pacey nodded.  


“I’d love to!” Joey squeezed his hand. “Where are we going?”  


“You leave that to me, Potter.” Pacey said. Joey smiled when his fingers brushed across her cheek and she was suddenly counting down the minutes to their date. Pacey smiled softly at her and then leaned forward to press a kiss to her forehead. He was going to make sure this date was everything she deserved and he knew exactly what they were going to do.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who has given this story a chance! I hope you're enjoying so far. I have lots planned for this story and for their journey. I'd love to hear from you guys and see what you think about what I've written so far!

Joey sat on the back porch of the B&B and took a sip of the hot tea in her hands. It instantly filled her body with warmth and her gaze drifted over the creek. The moon hit the creek and made it look beautiful. She missed these views. She couldn’t get this kind of scenery from her apartment in New York. Joey missed walking out the back door and seeing the moon hit the creek in just the perfect way. She sighed as she thought about what was waiting for her back In New York.  


After ending her relationship with Christopher, Joey hadn’t really given it much thought. She hadn’t really thought about what would happen when she headed home. Her sole focus had been on Jen. Now that she had the time to think about it, she wasn’t sure happened next. She knew that Christopher was moving out, he had told her so on the phone, and he would be gone before she got back. She felt sadness for the way things had ended between the two of them. He was a great guy and made her happy as best as he could but she knew it would never be enough. Their relationship would never be enough to keep her happy.  


Joey knew that the clock was ticking on her time left in Capeside. It was so easy to get swept up in romance with Pacey that she wouldn’t let herself think about what would happen next for them. Would they do long distance? Where did their relationship stand at the moment? She knew they were in love and wanted to be together, but they hadn’t had the talk the defined them yet. She giggled a little to herself at the notion. Here she was, a twenty-five year old woman, and she was wondering about defining the relationship.  


“What’s so funny?” Bessie walked out onto the porch and took a seat next to her sister.  


“I was thinking about Pacey,” Joey said.  


“He has always been known to make people laugh,” Bessie laughed. Joey smiled at her sister before taking another sip of her warm beverage. “So?”  


“So, what?” Joey looked at her curiously.  


“Oh come on!” Bessie rolled her eyes. “Aren’t you going to tell me what’s going on between the two of you?”  


“Bess,” Joey sighed. She knew that the two of them were going to be hounded with questions about their relationship and where it stood.  


“Don’t, Bess me!” She glared at her. “Has the eternal love triangle finally been resolved?”  


“Bessie!” Joey gasped.  


“Yes?” Bessie raised an eyebrow. “I’ve been here for the entire saga that was Joey, Pacey, and Dawson. I’ve listened to you complain about the both of them. Don’t you think I deserve to know how it ends?”  


“You’re so dramatic,” Joey rolled her eyes and shook her head.  


“It’s Pacey, isn’t it?” Bessie asked. She had secretly been rooting for the youngest Witter since she first saw the spark between the two of them. He challenged and believed in Joey in a way no one else ever had. He loved her for the sole purpose of loving her, no strings attached. It was a purely selfless love.  


“It’s always been Pacey,” Joey nodded and smiled softly. Her body immediately warmed as she thought about the blue eyed boy she loved.  


“Well duh,” Bessie rolled her eyes. “I could’ve told you that years ago.”  


“And yet you didn’t feel the need to?” Joey shot her an annoyed look.  


“Uh, no. You needed to figure it out for yourself,” Bessie said. “You, my little sister, have always been incredible stubborn and quick to brush off other people’s opinions if you don’t want to hear them.”  


“I hope you’re going somewhere with this,” Joey glared at her.  


“You had to see it for yourself, Jo. You needed to fall in love and get your heartbroken. You needed to experiment with other guys and see what was out there. You needed to figure out who Joey Potter was before you could settle down,” Bessie explained.  


“And you think I’ve finally figured that out?”  


“Do you?” Bessie countered.  


“Yeah,” Joey nodded. “I do.”  


“Then you’re finally ready for Pacey,” Bessie said. Joey felt her heart skip a beat when her sister said that and she chewed on her bottom lip. “And for what it’s worth, I think you made the right choice.”  


“I do too,” Joey smiled as she twirled the mug around in her hands. She looked out at the creek once more and knew that with complete certainty that she had, in fact, made the right choice. Loving Pacey Witter would never be the wrong choice.  


  


  


“So,” Doug dropped onto the bar stool and raised an eyebrow. “You and Joey, huh?”  


“I see Jackers told you,” Pacey wiped down the glass he was holding and then placed it back with the others.  


“He said that he saw the two of you getting reacquainted yesterday morning,” Doug said. He accepted the beer that his younger brother slid him and took a sip.  


“Of course he did,” Pacey shook his head. “I forgot how much that guy loves to gossip.”  


“I’m his boyfriend. Of course he’s going to tell me,” Doug said and then blushed slightly at what he just said.  


“Boyfriend, huh?” Pacey raised an eyebrow and smirked. “That sounds pretty official to me.”  


“It is,” Doug said and then quickly changed the subject. “So?”  


“So,” Pacey shrugged. “The two of us are going to give it another go. Third times a charm, right?”  


“Third?” Doug furrowed his brow. “You count junior and senior year as two different relationships?”  


“Oh,” Pacey ran a hand over his chin and sighed. “No. The two of us tried again while she was at Worthington.”  


“What?” Doug widened his eyes. “You lived with me all that time and never mentioned it. Jack never mentioned anything either.”  


“That’s because he doesn’t know. Nobody knew. The two of us kept it pretty quiet while we figured things out and then it was over before it could really start,” Pacey shrugged. He pulled the rag out of his back pocket and distracted himself with cleaning the bar. That was one part of his life that he hated reliving.  


“What happened?”  


“She chose another guy,” Pacey mumbled. His stomach clenched as he thought about their conversation that miserable night. “The guy that came to Christmas with her the year Audrey crashed my car into the Leery house.”  


“Him?” Doug pulled a face. “Guy was quite the flake.”  


“Well considering he left her like two weeks later, I would tend to agree with you.”  


“How did you two move past that?” Doug asked.  


“I lost all of Dawson’s money and suddenly that became a thing of the past. I don’t know,” Pacey shrugged. “We never really talked about it. It’s in the past now. We’ve both moved forward and stopped letting the past define us.”  


“So how did this reunion happen?” Doug asked. “Because last I heard, she had a boyfriend in New York.”  


“I let her off the hook,” Pacey said and then elaborated when he saw the confused look on his brother’s face. “I told her that it was time for me to really be happy and I couldn’t do that if I was waiting for her to come around. Just being in love with her was enough for me.”  


“You would really let her go, wouldn’t you?” Doug asked.  


“If it meant she was happy then yes,” Pacey said. “All I’ve ever wanted was for Joey to be happy and to live the life she’s always dreamed of. Of course, I always wanted it to be with me but if it wasn’t then I could accept it because I love her that much.”  


“That’s a pretty incredible thing to do,” Doug said and watched as his brother shrugged off the praise.  


“I love her, Dougie. I always have and I always will.”  


Doug was in almost awe of his younger brother. He always knew that he loved Joey more than anyone or anything else but he never realized the extent of that love. He’d put his happiness aside if it meant she got to be happy. Doug admired that and was almost envious of that. Everyone wanted to experience the kind of love that Pacey and Joey had for each other. To Doug, Pacey and Joey had a once in a lifetime kind of love. Their love was the kind of love that didn’t just disappear. It was the kind of love that stuck with you for the rest of your life and he was glad that they were embracing it again.  


  


  


“When you said that you wanted to take me on a date, I never expected it to be at six in the morning,” Joey grumbled. Pacey just smirked at her in response and opened the passenger door to his jeep for her. She glared but slid into the seat and then let out a yawn as he slammed the door shut.  


“Here,” Pacey handed her a coffee from the cup holder. “This should hold you over until we get there.”  


“And where is there exactly?” Joey took a sip of the warm beverage and felt incredible gratitude for the man sitting next to her. It was exactly the way she liked it, and it filled her with immense love that he remembered.  


“What part of surprise did you not understand, Potter?” Pacey kinked an eyebrow at her.  


“I hate surprises,” Joey retorted.  


“Oh I know,” Pacey smirked. He leaned forward and pressed a gentle kiss to her pouty lips. She raised an eyebrow at him.  


“Do you think you can just kiss me and I’ll stop pestering you for answers?”  


“That’s the plan,” Pacey kissed her once more and then started the engine.  


“You’re lucky I love you, Witter.”  


“I really am, aren’t I?” Pacey smiled at her and she was sure all of her insides melted. She was certain that he had gotten it backwards. Joey was the lucky one that Pacey loved her.  


“You know, I remember there was a time in high school when I couldn’t get you out of bed before noon,” Joey teased. “I’m not sure how I feel about this change.”  


“Oh I am still a pain in the ass to get out of bed in the morning,” Pacey laughed as he drove down the main road. “But when I know I’m going to spend the day with my beautiful girl, I will gladly wake up this early.”  


“Good to know,” Joey blushed. My beautiful girl. It had been so long since he called her his girl and she missed it so much. She missed him so much.  


Joey looked out at the dark sky and the essentially empty roads ahead of her. It wasn’t surprising how empty it was, given that it was six in the morning. She couldn’t honestly remember a time that she had just driven the streets of Capeside this early in the morning. Joey tried to avoid early mornings as much as she could in high school but this was nice. It was nice to see what her small town looked like when no one else was around. It felt comforting and peaceful. It was another one of those moments where she actually found herself missing living here. It happened occasionally and she knew that it wasn’t as awful as her teenage self would like to believe.  


Joey listened as Pacey hummed along to the radio and tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. He used to do that all the time when they dated and even when they were just friends. When he felt really crazy, he would start singing along. Pacey was a lot of things, but a singer was not one of them. He always tried to hit the high note and it never worked the way he wanted it to. It always made her giggle and she knew he sang even louder just to get a reaction out of her. There were times that he would have her laughing so hard that her stomach started to ache and tears ran down her cheeks. She smiled softly as she remembered those days and kept those memories locked closely to her heart.  


“And here we are,” Pacey pulled into a parking spot and cut the engine. Joey blinked and realized that she had been a trance. A Pacey trance.  


“Are we going sailing?” Joey widened her eyes in excitement when she looked around at the marina. Her heart fluttered inside her chest and she bit her lip.  


“Maybe,” Pacey slipped out of the car and then walked around to her side of the car. He opened the door and then held out a hand for her to take. She did and then laced their fingers together, walking alongside him towards the dock.  


“But how are we going sailing?” Joey furrowed her brow and looked up at him. “You don’t have a boat.”  


“I didn’t have a boat,” Pacey corrected. Joey stopped abruptly and Pacey felt himself tugged backwards. “What’s wrong?”  


“You have a boat?” Joey’s voice dropped.  


“Come on,” Pacey gently tugged on her hand and she found herself following after him. They passed by boat after boat and then he finally stopped in front of one. “And here she is.”  


Joey felt like all the wind was knocked out of her. It looked so much like _True Love._ It was a little bigger but the same shape and color. Joey felt herself suddenly swarmed with memories from their summer on board. All the kissing, the sailing, the swimming and most importantly, the love. She felt Pacey squeeze her hand and turned to look at him. His eyes were soft and filled with so much love. He looked like that sweet seventeen year old boy who was surprised she returned his love.  


“She’s beautiful,” Joey whispered.  


“Yes you are,” Pacey brushed a piece of hair off her face. Her cheeks immediately turned a shade of peek and he pressed a kiss to her forehead. “You haven’t even seen the best part.”  


“The bed?” Joey teased.  


“Okay the second best part,” Pacey smirked. Joey stuck her tongue out and giggled. She watched as he hopped onto the boat and then grabbed something, jumping back down to stand in front of her.  


“And what is this boats name?” Joey asked, immediately noticing that he was holding a name plate. He slid it out of the box and then held it up to her. Joey felt like everything around her froze and her eyes widened. Her heart raced in her chest and the butterflies were fighting to escape her stomach.  


“What do you think?” Pacey asked, trying to gauge her reaction.  


“It’s perfect,” Joey felt the tears prick in her eyes and one slipped down her face. She stepped closer to him and ran a finger over the name. _Castaways._ Her ultimate fantasy. Pacey named his boat after her ultimate fantasy. After all this time, and he still held that memory so close to his heart.  


"I love you, Jo.” Pacey lifted his hand and brushed a tear off her face with the pad of thumb. “It’s always been you, sweetheart. It always will be.”  


“I love you Pace,” Joey leaned forward and pressed her lips against his. Was it possible to be this in love with another person?  


“Now if you’ll join me on board,” Pacey jumped back onto the boat and gently placed the name plate on the ground.  


“Permission to come aboard?” Joey asked. He twirled around to face her, memories swarming him. She held her hand out to him and a bright smile was on her face. He ducked down to take her hand in his own and smiled his own smile.  


“Permission granted.”  


  


  


“So, do you want to tell me why the early wake up time was necessary?” Joey leaned against the railing and waited for him to return from below deck.  


“Age has done nothing for your lack of patience,” Pacey teased. She heard him rustling around and rolled her eyes. Joey finally saw him return and his hands were full.  


“What is all of this?”  


“Breakfast,” Pacey said. He placed the basket on the ground and then set the blanket down. He tossed a couple of pillows around on the blanket before opening the basket.  


“Breakfast on your boat?” Joey’s eyes softened.  


“Breakfast at sunrise on my boat,” Pacey corrected her. She watched him set containers of food on the blanket and then held out his hand for her, wiggling his fingers at her. She giggled and grabbed on to it and sat down with him on the blanket.  


“And just when I thought you couldn’t get any more romantic,” Joey crossed her legs underneath her and looked at him in awe.  


“I probably shouldn’t tell you that I made your favorite then,” Pacey smirked.  


“Blueberry pancakes and bacon?” Joey turned to look at the food in front of them and that’s exactly what she found. There was some fruit and coffee as well. “You remembered?”  


“I remember everything, Potter.” Pacey brushed a finger across her cheek and leaned over to press a kiss to her lips.  


“You’re going to spoil me, Witter.”  


“Good. That’s exactly what I intend to do,” Pacey kissed her nose and she smiled. He handed her a plate of food and she almost immediately tossed a piece of bacon into her mouth, causing him to laugh. They dug into their breakfasts and made small talk. The two flirted back and forth and found their easy banter. Once they were done, Pacey put their plates away and cleared off the blanket.  


“That was incredible Pace,” Joey scooted closer to him and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. He pulled her to lay down with him and she rested her head on his shoulder.  


“You’re incredible,” Pacey pressed a kiss to her forehead and those pesky butterflies came to life in her stomach again.  


“Can I tell you a secret?” Joey chewed on her bottom lip and then looked up into his comforting blue eyes.  


“Of course.”  


“I was so nervous about this morning,” Joey admitted. She started to play with the wrist band of his watch and listened to his breathing. His fingers ran through her hair and she scooted closer to him.  


“Honestly?” Pacey pressed a gentle kiss to her temple. “So was I. I think I paced around my entire apartment four times before I came to pick you up.”  


“Yeah?” Joey bit her lip as she scooted away to look at him. “I just don’t want to mess it up this time, Pace. I want to get it right.”  


“We will,” Pacey promised.  


“How can you be so sure?” Joey whispered. She didn’t want any fear moving forward with their relationship. She didn’t want to constantly be worried that the other shoe was bound to drop. She was sure of her love for him and she was sure that this was what she wanted.  


“Because we want it to work this time. We have learned from our past and have grown. We both know this is it,” Pacey said. His lifted his hand and cupped her cheek before smiling softly at her. “I know that I’m never going to let you go again. I refuse to ever watch you walk out of my life again.”  


“Good,” Joey nodded and pressed her forehead against his. “Because I have no intention of ever letting you get away again.”  


“This is it, Jo. We are forever,” Pacey promised. “I will do whatever I have to do to make sure that you are never unhappy or alone again.”  


“And I’ll do whatever I have to do to make sure you know how much I love you and that this is where I want to be,” Joey promised. “It’s like I told you in high school, Pace. Our paths led exactly where they were supposed to. They led right back to each other.”  


“You did say that, didn’t you?” Pacey tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.  


“You should probably start listening to me more often, Witter.” Joey teased.  


“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here,” Pacey smirked.  


“Just kiss me,” Joey playfully rolled her eyes and giggled when he smothered her face with kisses. He kissed every part of her face, except the one place she wanted him to. His hand tangled itself in her silky hair and he finally pressed his lips to hers. They moved in perfect sync and their tongues fighting for dominance left them breathless. Suddenly a slow light separated the two of them and they looked up to see the sun starting to rise. Joey rested her head on Pacey’s chest and he held her close to him as they watched the sunrise together.  


“I love you, Potter.”  


“I love you, Witter.”  



	4. Chapter 4

Pacey dropped the anchor and then let the breeze from the water rush over him. He loved being out at sea again. With the restaurant demanding most of his attention, he didn’t get the chance to take his boat out as much as he would like to. He might have taken it out maybe twice in the last year. This was the first time he had taken anyone else out on the boat with him since he restored her. He wasn’t sure why but he didn’t like anyone else on board with him. It was his safe place and the place where he was able to think. Some nights, after he closed up the restaurant he would find himself sitting on the deck and just looking up at the stars. Doug had been right all those years ago when he told him that he would see her face in the stars. No matter how much time passed, Pacey still saw her beautiful brown eyes looking back. Those brown eyes had both haunted and comforted him all these years.  


His blue eyes drifted over to where she was currently asleep on the blanket. Joey had helped him get everything set to take sail but then curled up on the blanket, promptly passing out. He smirked because he had a feeling this would happen after their early wake up call. Pacey remembered all those afternoons during their summer at sea. Joey would curl up with a book or her sketchbook. She insisted she wasn’t tired but then would fall asleep for hours at a time. Some days he would curl up with her, slowly falling asleep with her in his arms. Other times, he would just sit and watch her sleep. Kind of like he was doing right now.  


Pacey loved the way the sun hit her tan skin. It almost looked like she was glowing. Every couple of minutes, her nose would scrunch up and then she’d rub it. Her arm rested on the spot where he had been earlier and the other draped across her stomach. Her legs bent at the knees and she was curled up on her right side. He smiled at how she positioned herself. When they had been dating, Pacey always slept on the right side of the bed, which put her on his left. He wasn’t sure how they came to find themselves in that position but it became natural to them. By the end of their relationship, they just naturally gravitated towards their sides of the bed.  


As he leaned against the railing of the boat and watched her sleep in the sun, Pacey’s mind drifted towards what would happen in the next few days. It was already Thursday and she had to leave in two days to head back to New York. Her office had been calling nonstop the last twenty-four hours and he knew they needed her. His stomach clenched at the thought of having to say goodbye to her again but he knew it was different this time. Pacey knew that this was a different kind of goodbye. It wasn’t even really a goodbye, it was more of a see you later.  


But that thought didn’t make him feel much better. Now that he had her back, he didn’t want to be without her. He wanted to take her out to dinner every night and make her breakfast every morning. He wanted to curl up on the couch and read to each other. He wanted to take the boat out and disconnect from the world for hours at a time together. He wanted to make love to her before they fell asleep at night and then wake up to make love all over again. Pacey wanted everything with Joey and knew this transition was going to be a difficult one. They both had responsibilities. Pacey couldn’t just walk away from the restaurant, any more than she could walk away from editing. Realistically, long distance was going to have to be what they did next.  


“Uh oh,” Joey’s sleepy voice startled him. “You have your deep in thought face on.”  


“Hey,” Pacey smiled at her. Joey sat up, stretched out her back, and ran her fingers through her tangled hair.  


“How long was I asleep for?”  


“Thirty minutes maybe,” Pacey shrugged.  


“What have you been doing the entire time?” Joey asked. She wiggled her fingers at him and he stepped closer, taking her hand as he sat on the blanket with her.  


“Watching you sleep,” Pacey said. She blushed at the bluntness in his answer and pressed a kiss to his jaw.  


“You looked pretty deep in thought.”  


“I was,” Pacey pulled their joined hands into his lap and started to play with her fingers. He traced each finger from the knuckle to the fingernail, then back down again.  


“Anything you want to share?” Joey asked, nudging his shoulder with her own.  


“You go back to New York in two days, Jo.”  


“I know,” Joey whispered. This was the conversation she had been dreading but knew that they needed to have. They couldn’t run from their problems anymore if they wanted to last. “And you have to stay here in Capeside.”  


“I can’t just leave the restaurant,” Pacey nodded. “I have too much invested in it and it’s not just my money on the line. I have other people’s investments in it too.”  


“I would never ask you to give it up, Pace.” Joey insisted.  


“And I would never ask you to give up New York,” Pacey finally looked over at her. Her eyes reflected the same almost sadness as his own. “All you’ve ever wanted was to get out of this town and live out in the world.”  


“And I have,” Joey squeezed his hand. “But it keeps bringing me back to the same place, the same person. It keeps bringing me back to you.”  


“We are closed on Monday’s and are usually pretty slow on Tuesday and Wednesday,” Pacey said. “I could always come to you Sunday night and stay with you until Wednesday.”  


“Well I’m usually off on Saturday and Sunday,” Joey said. “I could come to you Friday night and then go back to New York with you on Sunday.”  
“I’m probably going to have to work when you’re here,” Pacey said. She moved to sit between his open legs and rested her back against his chest. His arms wrapped around her waist and held her close.  


“I may be able to entertain myself for a few hours,” Joey said and then looked up to smirk at him. “It’s not like I grew up here or anything.”  


“Things have changed around here, Potter. We have a Starbucks now,” Pacey teased and she giggled.  


“Before you know it, we may get a McDonalds.”  


“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here,” Pacey tickled her sides and she shrieked before swatting his hands away.  


“Watch it, Witter.” Joey ran her fingers up and down the arms that were holding her close. “You know, we haven’t defined the relationship.”  


“Defined the relationship?” Pacey’s chest rumbled with laughter and she giggled. “I had no idea you were that girly, Potter.”  


“I am not girly!” Joey protested and then turned to glare at him. She sat on her knees between his legs and raised an eyebrow. “I just want to make sure that everyone knows you’re a taken man.”  


“Should I get a tattoo that says Property of Joey Potter?” Pacey teased.  


“That might be nice,” Joey retorted with a smirk but then looked at him seriously. “But seriously, Pace. I want the Maddie Allen’s of the world to know that you’re not available.”  


“Do you trust me?” Pacey asked. He rested his hands on the tops of her thighs and moved closer to her. He could see all those insecurities resurfacing and wanted to squash them before they could consume her. He never wanted her to think she had anything to worry about.  


“Of course I trust you. It’s women like her that I don’t trust,” Joey mumbled and looked down.  


She hated that she still felt like that insecure seventeen year old at times but when it came to Pacey, jealousy had always reared its ugly head. He was kind, funny, and incredibly attractive. There was lots to like about him and women were always instantly drawn to him. Joey had to watch her college roommate fall in love with him. She remembered how Andie had the hardest time moving past their break-up. Images filled her mind of that reporter flirting with him and essentially offering herself up to him. She knew that Pacey would never cheat on her, he wasn’t that kind of person. That didn’t mean women wouldn’t try though, not that she could blame them. But he was hers, and only hers.  


“Hey,” Pacey cupped her cheek in his hand and brushed his thumb across her cheek. Her eyes lifted to look with his and she saw nothing but love and admiration staring back at her. “It’s like I have told you in the past. You have absolutely wrecked other women for me. You should actually feel sorry for them because they always get compared to you.”  


“Pace,” she blushed and bit her lip.  


“And let me tell you, sweetheart. They don’t even come close to comparing to you,” Pacey pressed his lips to her forehead and she closed her eyes. “You have nothing to worry about.”  


“Except for one thing,” Joey lifted her head to look at him. His eyes widened slightly in surprise.  


“What’s that?”  


“You’re not allowed to grow that thing back on your face because you miss me,” Joey ran her finger across his jaw and he laughed.  


“Well it’s a good thing you have mastered the art of shaving then,” Pacey smirked.  


“And I will certainly always have a razor handy,” Joey promised. He just laughed and then crashed their lips together in another one of their breathtaking kisses.  


  


  


“I just have to stop at the restaurant before I take you home,” Pacey said as he parked in front of the restaurant. It was close to five thirty and the two reluctantly found themselves back on solid land.  


“Is Hank working?” Joey asked, eager to meet the head chef. She stepped out of the car and looked over at her boyfriend, who was walking around to meet her.  


“He should be,” Pacey laughed. He laced their fingers together as they walked into the restaurant. “But no distracting him, Potter.”  


“Well it’s a good thing I know the boss,” Joey stuck her tongue out at him and he just shook his head in amusement. They stepped into the restaurant and Joey was startled by how busy it was. There was a line of people waiting to be seated and the staff was frantically rushing around. “Is it always this busy?”  


“Thursdays are usually pretty busy,” Pacey nodded. “Plus, it’s the dinner rush right now. It will calm down in a few hours.”  


“And they are okay without you here?” Joey asked.  


“Kathy is incredible. She’s my night time manager,” Pacey said. “Sometimes it’s like they don’t even need me.”  


“I’m sure that’s not true,” Joey insisted.  


“Why don’t you go get a drink at the bar while I check in with the kitchen?” Pacey suggested.  


“Okay,” Joey nodded in agreement.  


“Just tell Sean that I told him it’s on the house,” Pacey said. He pressed a quick kiss to her cheek and then headed off towards the kitchen. Joey watched him go, pride filling her chest, and then turned to walk in the direction of the bar.  


“What can I get for ya?” A handsome young bartender stepped in front of her and tossed a rag over his shoulder.  


“Red wine please,” Joey said as she slid onto one of the barstools.  


“Coming right up,” he nodded and then walked away to grab the drink. Not even a minute later, he was back with her drink and smiling at her. “And from the kiss on the cheek from the boss, I’m going to assume this is on the house.”  


“Oh,” Joey blushed and smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, he said to mention something to Sean.”  


“That would be me,” Sean nodded and then wiped down the counter in front of her. “And how do you know the boss man?”  


“He’s my boyfriend,” Joey bit her lip and felt warmth rush through her body. Boyfriend. It felt so good to call Pacey her boyfriend again.  


“The boss has a girlfriend?” Sean raised an eyebrow. “Well damn. He really is a private guy.”  


“It’s new,” Joey said.  


“And what’s the boss’ girlfriend’s name?” Sean asked. Everyone on staff knew that Pacey had flings but never anything serious. Certainly no one that would call him their boyfriend so his curiosity was getting the best of him. He had to hand it to his boss, the woman in front of him was incredibly beautiful. He certainly had great taste in the ladies.  


“Joey,” she smiled kindly. She saw Sean abruptly stop making the drink he was working on and look up at her in surprise. His green eyes pierced into her and she was startled by the brightness of them.   


“Joey?” Sean repeated, his voice sounded stunned and like he couldn’t believe it. “You’re Joey?”   


“I am,” Joey furrowed her brows together in confusion. “I can’t tell if that’s a good thing or a bad thing.”   


“A very good thing,” Sean nodded and then smiled. “It’s just that the boss, he talks about you a lot. It’s always Joey this or Joey that. We were all starting to think you were some made up person and he was losing his sanity. Wow. You’re actually real.”   


“I’m very real,” Joey nodded. She swallowed a lump forming in her throat and battled the unexpected tears that threatened to spill from her eyes. For what felt like the hundredth time, she was overcome with gratitude to have Pacey back in her life and that he had never given up on her. Even when she had given him every reason to. “So. What kind of boss is Pace?”   


“An incredible one. He is probably one of the most understanding and patient people I’ve ever met,” Sean said. He slid two drinks to the guests a few stools down from her and then worked to make another set of drinks. “There’s not a single person on this staff that doesn’t respect him. He is incredibly accommodating and will jump in to help out if he sees us getting overwhelmed. It would be so easy to take advantage of his kindness but no one would even think about it. He’s made sure that we all know his door is open to any of us whenever we may need him.”   


“And how did you get out of wearing those Hawaiian shirts?” Joey smirked. She could see the admiration on Sean’s face and knew that he very much respected Pacey. It wasn’t hard to respect him.   


“I told him that I work for tips and no one would tip a man in a neon Hawaiian shirt, no matter how attractive I may be.” Sean smirked and she laughed. “He mumbled something under his breath but ultimately let the bartenders wear plain black shirts.”   


“I’m impressed.”   


“None of us understand the uniform,” Sean said.   


“He’s been obsessed with Hawaiian shirts as long as I’ve known him. It’s a rather unhealthy obsession he has,” Joey said.   


“I know you’re not talking bad about me to my staff, Potter.” Pacey’s voice startled her and she turned around to find him standing there, an eyebrow raised.   


“I’d never!” Joey insisted.   


“That’s what I thought,” he smirked. Pacey held out his hand and she slipped hers inside of it. “Come with me.”   


“Okay,” Joey agreed and then turned back to Sean. “It was nice to meet you.”   


“It was very nice to meet you and I’m very glad you’re real,” Sean said. Joey giggled and Pacey looked at him like he was insane before tugging his girlfriend along with him.  


“What was that about?”   


“Apparently your staff thought I was your imaginary friend because of how much you talked about me,” Joey bumped his hip with her own. He blushed slightly and averted his eyes.   


“Well they have no idea what they’re talking about and they are all fired tomorrow.”   


“Whatever you say honey,” Joey leaned into his side and pressed a kiss to his shoulder. They stopped outside of his kitchen and then Pacey told her to wait a second. She stuffed her hands into her pockets and let her eyes scan the restaurant. She still couldn’t believe that it was up and standing again, all thanks to Pacey.   


“Jo,” Pacey ran a hand over the back of her head and she turned back to face him. He was standing with an older man with brown soulful eyes and a kind smile. “Sweetheart, this is Hank. Hank, this is my girlfriend Joey.”   


“Joey,” Hank took her hand in both of his and gently squeezed it. “It is an absolutely pleasure to meet you.”   


“The pleasure is all mine,” Joey smiled. “Pacey said nothing but incredible things about you.”   


“He is too kind,” Hank said. “And you are as beautiful as Pacey described you.”  


“Thank you,” Joey felt her cheeks redden at the compliment.   


“You have a good one, Joey. It’s very rare you meet young men like Mr. Witter,” Hank said and it was Pacey’s turn to blush. They could both hear the respect and admiration in the older man’s voice.   


“He is one of a kind,” Joey agreed.   


“You hold on tight to this one,” Hank squeezed her hands again and she nodded.   


“I absolutely will,” Joey promised. Pacey ran his hand over the back of her head again and she smiled at him.   


“You two remind me of my beloved Beth and me,” Hank said. The two saw the love and sadness fill his eyes in an instant. “It’s the kind of love you only get once in your life and it’s not something to take for granted. You never know how much time you have with your loved one and you should make sure to cherish every second of it.”   


“We will,” Pacey promised.   


“We absolutely will,” Joey nodded.   


“I need to get back to work,” Hank said. He gently released Joey’s hands and then smiled at the young couple. They watched him walk into the kitchen and Joey reached for her boyfriend’s hand almost instantly, not surprised at all to see that he was reaching for her.   


“I spent less than five minutes with him and I feel this intense connection to him,” Joey turned to face her boyfriend. He tugged her into his arms and she rested her forehead on his chest.   


“He’s that kind of person,” Pacey said. “After one day with him, I felt more of a connection to him than I ever have with my own father.”   


“He’s so real,” Joey whispered and he knew exactly what she meant. Guys like Hank were once in a lifetime and incredibly genuine. Joey knew that she was going to grow close to the older man the more time she spent at the restaurant.   


“Let me get you home,” Pacey mumbled into her hair.   


“Can I come to your apartment?” Joey asked. She looked up and saw the surprise in his eyes. “I’m not ready to say goodnight yet.”   


“Of course,” Pacey nodded. He would never be ready to say goodnight to her. He could spend every second of every day with her and never grow tired of her.   


“And maybe we can do that thing we used to do on the boat?” Joey suggested, a soft smile gracing her beautiful face. Pacey tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and pressed a kiss to her forehead.   


“You wanna do that thing?” Pacey raised an eyebrow. She nodded with hopeful eyes and chewed on her bottom lip. “Okay. Let’s get out of here, Potter.”   


“Lead the way,” Joey smiled and that’s exactly what he did.   


  


  


“Have you read this since our summer together?” Joey leaned back against his chest as they cuddled up together on Pacey’s couch.   


“I have not,” Pacey shook his head before pressing a kiss to the top of her head. He looked down at his copy of _The Little Mermaid_ on the coffee table and rested his back against the cushions. “I couldn’t bring myself to read it. It reminded me of you.”   


“I couldn’t either,” Joey admitted. “I tried once and I almost ruined the ink with my tears.”   


“I took it with me that summer,” Pacey swallowed back a lump and held her tighter to his body. Joey ran her fingers across his forearm and ran her toe up his calf. “But every time I went to open it, I got this horrible pain in my chest and had to stop. I fell asleep with it once just because I wanted to hold something close when I couldn’t have you.”   


“Do you remember that purple elephant you got me in The Keys?” Joey asked. She liked that they could talk honestly about their past and break-up.   


“You mean after I spent almost an hour trying to win it for you?” Pacey laughed and she chuckled at the memory. He had been so frustrated every time he lost the boardwalk game and kept throwing money at the young man working. All he had to do was knock over bottles with a baseball but sports had never been Pacey’s specialty. He was determined to win it for her though and it made her love him even more. The happy look on his face when he handed it to her stayed with her to this day.   


“I used to sleep with it the summer after you left,” Joey said. She remembered how she held it tightly to her chest and pretended that it was Pacey in her arms. That he was the one lulling her to sleep and not a stuffed animal. “I even took it with me to college and kept it close by for comfort.”   


“Do you still have it?” Pacey asked. He felt his heart skip a beat. He liked that they were being honest and open with each other. It showed just how far they’ve comeand how much they’ve matured.   


“Of course,” she nodded and turned her body to look up at him. “Whenever I feel sad or alone, I take it out and hold it close.”   


“Well you have me now,” Pacey traced his thumb across her cheek and her eyes fluttered closed. “You’ll never have to feel alone again.”   


“Promise?” Her eyes locked with his and they looked for the reassurance.   


“I promise sweetheart,” Pacey nodded.   


“I’m still going to keep him though,” Joey said. “So I can have him when you’re not in New York with me.”   


“I wouldn’t want it any other way,” Pacey brushed his nose down hers and then pressed his lips to hers. She twisted a little to face him and buried her fingers in his hair as the kiss deepened. Her body felt like it was on fire and his heart pounded in his chest. They were certain they would never get tired of feeling the other’s lips on their own. Joey pulled back and nuzzled her face into his cheek.   


“Can you read to me?” Joey asked. Pacey ran his fingers through her soft hair and then pressed one more kiss to her lips. He couldn’t get enough of her soft lips and sweet kisses.   


“Always,” Pacey scooped her back up into his arms and reached for the book. Joey snuggled into him and rested her head on his chest. She listened as he read from the book in his one hand and the other hand brushed through her hair. For the first time in a really long time, Joey finally felt like she was home. Curled up in Pacey’s arms and listening to his voice, this was where she belonged.   



	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have been super nervous about posting this chapter. I have written and rewritten certain parts of it so many times. I've never really written any kind of sex scene before and I am super nervous about how it turned out. I tried my best and hope it's not terrible! With that, fair warning that there is sexual material in this chapter. Let me know what you think of the story so far, I love to hear from you all! Thank you so much for the continued support!

Joey slowly opened her eyes and felt dazed. She was wrapped up in a blue comforter that she didn’t recognize and a mattress that was so comfortable she never wanted to move. Her hair was spread across the pillow and she rubbed her eyes as the room came into focus. The walls were light blue and the sunlight was blaring inside. Running her fingers through her knotty hair, Joey slowly sat up and realized she was in Pacey’s bedroom. The spot next to her was empty and she wondered where he was. Memories of falling asleep on the couch, reading together, and sharing passionate kisses filled her mind. Joey ran a finger across her lip, still feeling Pacey’s soft lips against them.  


Pacey’s kisses had always sent her to a place of pure bliss. They made her feel so alive and the world around them always disappeared. Her toes curled from the passion and the tenderness of his love. Joey loved the way his fingers ran through her hair and he gripped the back of her hair, holding her close to him. Pacey wasn’t perfect, nobody was, but the way his mouth moved against hers and across her skin was damn near close to perfection. Her body tingled just thinking about his mouth on her body and she had to shake away the sudden rush of lust.  


Joey knew that she was going to handle the sexual part of their relationship much differently this time. There would be no waiting nine months and there would be no hesitation. She was comfortable in her own skin and she was secure in her love for Pacey. She knew there was no way she would be able to wait long to share that intimate connection with him. It had been almost seven years since the two were truly connected as one and that was long enough. She wanted, no she needed that connection with him. Just thinking about it made her stomach fill with butterflies and her body warm.  


Tossing the covers aside, Joey realized she was in a pair of boxers instead of her jeans. She still had the same shirt on from yesterday but Pacey must have changed her pants when he carried her to bed. Looking at the sailboat boxers, Joey couldn’t stop the giggle that escaped her. Of course Pacey had boxers with sailboats on them. That man was one with the sea and would live on a sailboat for the rest of his life if he could. She looked at the pillow next to her and saw a note on it.  


_Had to run to the restaurant. Help yourself to anything in the kitchen. I love you, Pacey P.S. you still snore._  


Joey rolled her eyes but laughed. She pulled her hair into a messy bun as she climbed out of the bed. His room was simple and very much like him. There were clothes scattered all around the laundry basket instead of inside of it. There was a dresser and a nightstand with a chair in the corner by the window. The dresser had picture frames all over it. There were ones with his nieces and nephews. One of him with Gretchen and Doug. He had a picture of him and Amy. There was a frame with the picture of him, Dawson, her and Jen from high school. He had a picture with Jack from their time in Boston. Her eyes landed on one final frame and her heart skipped a beat. It was of the two of them from high school. He was standing behind her, his arms wrapped around her shoulders and her hands were interlocked with his. They were smiling at each other, completely unaware that the picture was being taken.  


Joey ran a gentle finger over the picture. She wished she could tell those teenagers that were about to experience a heartbreak like no other that it would all be okay in the end. That they would find their way back to each other and be happier than they ever dreamed. She wished she could prepare them for all the pain they would have to endure to get to this place but tell them that it would be worth it in the end. That their love story had a happy ending. Joey smiled and headed towards the kitchen, in desperate need of coffee.  


Once inside his surprisingly clean kitchen, Joey searched for coffee. She knew there had to be some in there, he was as addicted to caffeine as she was. She found it in the cupboard and giggled when she saw it sitting between a box of sugary cereal and a box of Pop Tarts. The man was a chef and owned his own restaurant but still ate cereal that rotted your teeth and Pop Tarts for breakfast. She was glad that he hadn’t completely changed. Life hadn’t always been kind to him, but he stayed determined and made something of his life. A life that she was so proud of and couldn’t wait to learn more about.  


“I see you found the coffee,” Pacey’s voice startled her. She spun around to find him standing in the doorway, his arms crossed and an amused smile on his face. He had on a black dress shirt and a pair of khakis. He looked so handsome that it made her heart race inside her chest.  


“Right between all your little kid food,” Joey teased as she pressed the power button on the coffee machine.  


“I will have you know that cereal has much less sugar than the stuff I ate in high school,” Pacey playfully glared at her as he made his way over to her.  


“I bet,” Joey raised an eyebrow. She leaned back against the counter as he rested his hands on either side of her on the counter, trapping her between his body and the counter.  


“You look cute in my boxers,” Pacey leaned forward and brushed his lips across her cheek. She swallowed and felt her knees tremble beneath her when she felt his breath on her neck. His lips brushed that spot behind her ear and she clutched the front of his shirt. “They look much better on you then they ever will on me.”  


“We should get you in to talk to someone about your obsession with sailboats,” Joey teased. She closed her eyes as he nibbled on her earlobe. His large hands rested on her hips as he moved his lips to her jaw.  


“Hmm,” Pacey mumbled against her warm skin. “I’ll get on that.”  


“You do that,” Joey closed her eyes and tilted her head back as his lips moved to her throat. She let out breathy moan and ran her hands up his back, feeling the muscles flex.  


Pacey’s lips finally hovered above hers and her body tingled in anticipation. She licked her lips once and then grabbed the front of his shirt to tug his body flat against hers. Their lips met in another one of their breathtaking kisses. Their lips moved in perfect sync and Joey felt his tongue brush against her lips, seeking entrance. She gladly granted him entrance and moaned when his tongue brushed against hers. Pacey wrapped his arms around her waist and tugged her even closer, if that was even possible. Her fingers found their way into his hair and he tugged gently on the soft hair.  


Suddenly the need for oxygen become desperate and they reluctantly pulled apart. Pacey pressed his forehead against hers and their chests rose and fell quickly. He pressed a gentle kiss to the tip of her nose and she smiled softly before pressing a kiss of her own to his jaw. The coffee machine beeped next to them but she didn’t feel the need for caffeine anymore. Pacey gave her the boost of caffeine she needed to make it through the day.  


“I want to make you dinner tonight,” Pacey said. Joey pulled back but kept her arms wrapped around his shoulders.  


“At the restaurant?”  


“No,” he shook his head. “I want to make you dinner here.”  


“Okay,” Joey agreed.  


“And,” Pacey leaned down to press a kiss behind her ear. “Plan to stay the night.”  


“It’s a date,” Joey agreed and pulled him back in for another passionate kiss.  


  


  


“Hey,” Dawson greeted as he walked towards the porch of the B&B. Joey looked up from the manuscript she was editing and smiled at the sight of him.  


“Hey Dawson,” Joey said. She slid her glasses into her hair and crossed her legs underneath her. Dawson sat down in the chair next to her and stretched his legs out in front of him. “You all set to head back?”  


“I am,” he nodded. “I’m taking a night flight. I have to be back in the office first thing tomorrow morning.”  


“Have you figured out your ending yet?” Joey asked.  


“I decided to stop overthinking it and to let it just come to me,” Dawson said.  


“Who are you and what have you done with Dawson Leery?” Joey raised a teasing eyebrow.  


“I think losing Jen made me realize just how much time I’ve spent overthinking instead of just living,” Dawson said.  


“Me too,” Joey nodded. She started to fumble with the pages of the manuscript in her lap and her heart felt heavy as she thought about Jen. “I miss her so much. I just keep waiting for her to come bouncing up the stairs and gossip with me about everything.”  


“Did you talk to her a lot while you were in New York?”  


“I lived with her when I first moved there,” Joey said. “After graduating from Worthington, I got the job in New York and realized I wasn’t going to be able to take it if I couldn’t find a couple of roommates. Jen offered me a room at her apartment because Jack had moved back to Capeside.”  


“You and Jen roommates, I never thought I’d see that happen.” Dawson teased.  


“I spent so much time hating her for reasons that seem so ridiculous to me. All she ever wanted was to be my friend and I pushed her away like I do all great things in my life,” Joey sighed.  


“Like Pacey?” Dawson asked.  


“Like Pacey,” Joey nodded. She looked over at the blonde and saw no malice or resentment in his eyes. He looked calm and just happy to be sitting with her.  


“I’m not going to lie, I’m surprised it took you two this long to give it another try.”  


“We tried again in college,” Joey said. She felt her heart clench and her stomach twist as she thought back to that time. She could still picture his heartbroken face and the lack of communication from him for a few weeks.  


“You did?” Dawson widened his eyes in surprise. “When?”  


“A few weeks before you lost all your money,” Joey winced as she recalled their verbal altercation. That was a time in her life she never wanted to relive. She knew that none of them ever wanted to get to that point again.  


“He wasn’t kidding when he said he lost everything,” Dawson mumbled. “I had no idea.”  


“It’s Pacey. Of course he wasn’t going to tell anyone,” Joey shook her head. She knew Pacey, she always had. He would never let anyone see her as the bad guy for breaking his heart. He would hold that pain inside and move on like he always did. It filled her with regret for how she treated him back then but pushed it away. Dwelling on the past would do them no good.  


“I’m assuming you ran?” Dawson shot her a knowing look.  


“I hate how well you know me,” Joey groaned.  


“The disadvantages of knowing someone your entire life,” Dawson laughed. “You two seem to be making it work this time.”  


“We are,” Joey nodded and smiled softly. “I love him and I need him. I always have and I always will.”  


“I can’t promise Sam will end up with Petey though,” Dawson teased and she laughed.  


“As long as she quits the whining over the two of them, I’ll be okay.”  


“I’m going to miss you, Joey.” Dawson said. Her eyes softened and she reached over to squeeze his hand.  


“I’m going to miss you too, Dawson.” Joey said. “But I’m always a phone call away.”  


“And the phone goes both way,” Dawson nodded.  


  


  


“Come in,” Pacey called out as he typed something on his computer. He heard his office door open and looked over, a bright smile immediately filling his face.  


“Who is that?” Jack cooed to the little girl in his arms. Her eyes immediately went wide at the sight of Pacey and she bounced on Jack's hip in excitement. Amy threw her arms out towards him. “Is that Uncle Pacey?”   


“Hi beautiful girl,” Pacey immediately stood up and scooped the one year old into his arms. He pressed kisses all over her cheeks and was rewarded with sweet giggles. “You are by far the most beautiful girl in the world.”   


“I wouldn’t let Joey hear you say that,” Jack teased. He closed the office door and then dropped down on the couch in the corner of the office, placing Amy’s bag on the floor.   


“She’d understand,” Pacey shrugged. He sat back down in his chair and Amy immediately curled up in his lap, resting her head on his broad chest. Pacey ran his fingers over the soft blonde curls on the top of her head. “God, she looks so much like Jen.”   


“She really does,” Jack nodded in agreement. “Which is a good thing, considering what a pathetic excuse of a man her father is.”   


“I’m pretty sure that the title of father is yours now, McPhee.” Pacey smirked.   


“You know what I mean,” Jack rolled his eyes.   


“How are you and Dougie adjusting?”   


“We are making it work,” Jack said. “He’s incredible with her. The other night he woke up and was taking care of her before I even realized what was happening.”   


“Well he did always want to be a dad,” Pacey said. He was really glad to hear that his brother was stepping up and being the partner that Jack needed during this difficult time.  


“For a while there, I thought the two of us weren’t even going to make it. His reluctance to come out and always hide our relationship. I understood what he was going through but it just felt like we were never making any progress,” Jack explained. “Then I took in Amy and it felt like added pressure on the relationship but he’s really stepped up. He told an old couple on the beach the other day that I was his boyfriend.”   


“That’s a huge step for Dougie,” Pacey said. “That’s a huge step for the both of you. I’m happy for you, Jackers. I’m happy for the both of you.”   


“I just wish Jen was here to see it,” Jack sighed. “I wish she could be here for all of this.”   


“Me too,” Pacey nodded. “I’d give anything to just hear another one of her encouraging speeches. The ones where you want to roll your eyes from the truth but know you need to hear it.”   


“She had her fair share of those with you,” Jack laughed. Amy squirmed in Pacey’s lap and then snuggled further into his chest. He rubbed her back and watched as she stuck her thumb into her mouth, her eyes getting heavy with exhaustion. “So, am I going to get a lot of sad Pacey days when Joey heads back to the city?”   


“No,” Pacey rolled his eyes and laughed. “I think I’ll be okay.”   


“If you say so,” Jack smirked. “But we are still on for Thursday night’s right?”   


“I could never deprive you of guy’s night,” Pacey teased.  


Thursday night guy’s night was something Jack and Pacey had come up with when they were in college. It started when they were roommates and it felt like they never got the time to hang out with each other. They would watch sports or movies. Some nights Pacey would make them something to eat and other nights they would order pizza. They always had beer and they would give each other a rundown on what was going on in their lives. Joey and Jen used to tease them about their “bro time” but they never missed a night. It was the reason they were as close as they were today.   


“I demand a home cooked meal this time,” Jack said.   


“Well then you better get home to Dougie,” Pacey retorted with a smirk.   


“I bet Joey wouldn’t have to beg,” Jack raised an eyebrow.   


“She’s going to get a home cooked meal tonight,” Pacey smirked.   


“No fair!” Jack groaned. Pacey just laughed and held Amy close to him.   


  


  


Joey ran a hand over her stomach in an attempt to settle the butterflies in her stomach. It felt like they were making a desperate attempt to escape her stomach. She looked down at herself and wondered if she should’ve worn a dress. After an hour of fretting, she had settled on a pair of jeans and a loose fitting blue tank top. Her hair was in waves around her shoulders and she had a splash of mascara on. She chewed on her bottom lip and lifted her hand to knock. She blushed at the duffle bag that was hanging over her shoulder and shook her head.   


She was being silly. This was Pacey, her Pacey. The same Pacey she had known since she was six years old. The same Pacey Witter that took her virginity at the ski lodge and taught her what real love was supposed to look like. The goofy but loveable guy that bought her a wall to further her talents. The passionate and intense man who took her sailing for a summer and opened her eyes to what the world looked like. The handsome and sexy guy that took her breath away every time she looked at him. Pacey was a lot of things but he was never just Pacey to her. To Joey, Pacey was everything.   


With that final thought, Joey knocked on the front door and then bounced on the balls of her feet anxiously. Not even a minute later, Pacey swung the front door open with a bright smile. Those damn butterflies went into overdrive and she smiled wide.   


“Well damn,” Pacey let his eyes take in her entire figure. “I’m certain you get even more beautiful every time I see you.”   


“And you get even more charming every time I see you,” Joey blushed and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. She was certain she would never get used to the compliments and looks of adoration from him. He always looked at her like she was the most precious and important thing in the world.   


“Well come in,” Pacey opened the door wider and gestured her inside. He took the bag from her shoulder and tossed it onto the couch. He pressed a quick kiss to her lips and then smiled at her. “I hope you’re hungry.”   


“I’m always hungry,” Joey chuckled. The fresh aromas from his cooking made her stomach rumble and she followed him into the kitchen. “What are you making?”   


“Lasagna,” Pacey said. He handed her a glass of wine and then moved back towards the stove, while she sat at the counter. “I’ve been working on a new tomato sauce, trying to get it just right, so I figured I’d try it out on you. You’ve never been afraid to tell me the blunt truth.”   


“I’ve never been a food critic before,” Joey said before taking a sip of the wine in front of her. “If I get food poisoning though, you’re the one who is going to be taking care of me mister.”   


“I think I can handle that,” Pacey laughed.   


“So, what’s your specialty?” Joey asked. She watched as he made a salad and looked at her with a raised eyebrow.   


“My specialty?”   


“Like your signature meal,” Joey said. “Every chef has one.”   


“Fish,” Pacey said. “I can make fish work with just about anything.”   


“There’s not going to be any fish in the lasagna, right?” Joey scrunched her nose and he laughed.   


“No, Potter. I steered clear of the fish,” Pacey said.   


Joey smiled and watched as he finished preparing their dinner. He moved so effortlessly around the kitchen and seemed at complete ease. The only other time that Joey saw him look this calm was their summer at sea. She knew that he had picked the perfect career path for himself. Pacey was made for life in the kitchen and he seemed happier than she had seen him in a very long time. Once their dinner was on the table and it was set for the two of them, Pacey gestured her over to the same table in the corner of his kitchen. He held out the chair for her and she pressed a kiss to his cheek before sitting down. He took the seat across from her and then started to dish out their dinner.   


“I tried to imagine all day what you were going to make for dinner,” Joey said.   


“And what did you imagine?” Pacey asked. He watched her take a bite of lasagna and her eyes seemed to roll into the back of her head, letting out a content moan. He licked his lips and swallowed hard at the look on her face.   


“This is so good,” Joey swallowed the piece of lasagna and immediately went for another one. “Whatever you put in the tomato sauce, needs to be in there always.”   


“Good to know,” Pacey smirked before taking his own bite. He wasn’t one to boast but it was delicious.   


“And to answer your previous question, I was guessing fish.”   


“Fish, huh?” Pacey chuckled. “Give me a little credit, Potter. I know you can only handle fish in moderation.”   


“Well after a summer at sea, I think I ate enough fish to last me a lifetime. I’d never say no to salmon though,” Joey said.   


“Well I will just have to remember that in the future,” Pacey said. “And I’m going to have to teach you how to make a meal or two for when you’re in New York.”   


“And how do you know I haven’t become a culinary extraordinaire?” Joey challenged.   


“You are extraordinary at many things, my dear, but cooking has never been one of them.”   


“I can make a mean mac and cheese,” Joey insisted.   


“Homemade or from the box?” Pacey smirked. She narrowed her eyes at him and he laughed.   


“I can never get the cheese sauce right!” Joey complained. “The last time I tried, I burnt it.”   


“How in the world did you burn it?” Pacey widened his eyes. He watched her take another bite before answering his question.   


“I got distracted,” Joey winced. “I was reading a book and forgot I was cooking.”   


_“Little Women?”_ Pacey smirked. He knew that was the only book that would distract her so much that she would forget she was making dinner. It had been that way the entire time he had known her and knew she could still got lost in the story, no matter how many times she read it.  


“No,” Joey lied but saw him raise an eyebrow at her. She sighed. “Yes.”   


“I’m surprised that book is still functioning.”   


“I take great care of my books. Unlike other people I know,” Joey stuck her tongue out at him.   


“Just remember who has the chocolate cake for dessert,” Pacey said.   


“I love you,” Joey’s eyes lit up and he laughed.   


“I love you too,” Pacey lifted her hand off the table and pressed a kiss to it.   


  


  


“If you keep cooking like this for me,” Joey dropped onto the couch next to him. They had finished dinner and dessert, and Joey was certain she couldn’t eat for a week. “I will never fit into my jeans again.”   


“Says the woman who goes on a run every single morning,” Pacey dropped next to her and rested an arm over the back of the couch.   


"Maybe we can go on a run together tomorrow morning,” Joey suggested.   


“I’d rather run across hot lava,” Pacey shook his head. “But I appreciate the offer.”   


“One of these days I will get you to exercise with me,” Joey scooted closer to him on the couch and nuzzled into his side. His fingers immediately found their way into her hair and start to run through the silky locks.   


“Not likely, Potter.”   


“I have my ways of persuasion,” Joey’s fingers started to fumble with the buttons on his shirt and she pressed a kiss to his jaw.   


“Do you think you can just kiss me with those luscious lips and I will cave?” Pacey felt her lips move towards his ear and he tilted his head to the side. Her teeth tugged on his earlobe and he groaned.   


“Is it working?” Joey whispered into his ear and then ran her tongue along the shell of his ear. He moaned and tightened his grip on her hair.   


“No,” he sputtered and they both knew he was lying. His free hand trailed the length of her body and rested on her hip, tugging her onto his lap. Joey straddled his lap and ran her fingers through his hair.   


“Liar,” Joey whispered before their lips met.   


Pacey tightened his grip on her waist, pulling her chest flat against his, and threaded his fingers through her hair. She rocked against him as the kiss deepened and heard the moan that escaped his lips. Their tongues met and their passion grew. Joey felt him thrust up against her and her body craved him in ways she hadn’t craved anything in a very long time. Pacey’s lips moved from hers, down to her jaw, and then trailed down her neck. She sighed in content and tugged gently on his hair as he moved to kiss her throat. Joey was ready to move this to the bedroom, she was ready to be connected with him on the most intimate level possible.   


“Pace,” Joey’s whisper was breathless.   


“What is it?” Pacey moved to look at her. Her lips were kiss swollen, her hair was tussled from his fingers, and he swore she was the most beautiful woman in the whole world. He watched as she untangled herself from his lap and stood up. He was disappointed from loss of contact but saw her hold out a hand to him.   


“Let’s go into the bedroom,” Joey pulled him to stand with her and he swallowed hard. He nodded and followed after her as she led him towards his bedroom. Pacey closed the door behind the two of them and then turned to face her.   


“Are you sure?” Pacey looked deep into her eyes and saw nothing but love looking back at him.   


“I’m absolutely sure,” Joey brushed her fingers across his cheek and watched his eyes close at the contact. He cupped her hand with his own and then pressed a kiss to her palm. “I want this, I want you.”   


“I always want you,” Pacey promised.   


Joey took a step closer to him and lifted her other hand to cup his face. She brushed her lips against his at first, gently, and then firmly. His hand found its way to the back of her head as he deepened their kiss. Joey moved her hands from his face and slowly started to unbutton his shirt. Once it was completely unbuttoned, she gently slid it from his shoulders and used her hands to push the under shirt off his body. Joey’s eyes roamed his body and her body clenched in anticipation. His chest was broader and more defined from the last time she saw him shirtless. He sucked in a breath when she trailed a finger down his chest and then the patch of hair that trailed from his belly button to below his pants.   


It was Pacey’s turn to discard her of her shirt. His long fingers brushed her sides and she lifted her arms when he reached her shoulders. The shirt was tossed a side and her body flushed as his eyes roamed her body. His hands moved to the back of her body and he unclasped her bra, tossing it to the pile of their already discarded clothes. He pulled her body against his, and the both moaned when their bare skin came in contact. It was one of the most electric feelings in the world and nothing had ever felt more right to them. Their lips met in another hot kiss and they both made quick work of their jeans, their lips never breaking contact.   


“Make love to me, Pacey.” Joey mumbled against his lips and his heart raced inside his chest. He lifted her up in his arms and carried her towards the bed. He gently rested her on the mattress and followed her onto it, hovering his body over hers. They held eye contact and both promised with their eyes that this time their bond would never break. This time, they would last.   


Pacey pressed a quick kiss to her lips and then moved his lips down her body. His lips kissed every inch of bare skin he could reach and then pressed a kiss to each of her bare breasts. Her back arched as his lips caressed her skin. Joey closed her eyes and moaned at the feel of his lips all over her warm body. It had been far too long since they had been there and it was the most incredible feeling in the world. It felt absolutely right. His lips placed sweet kisses across her stomach and her hips arched again, the need filling her body. His thumbs tugged her panties down and then he was kissing his way up her thighs. Joey felt his breath right at her core and breathed heavily in anticipation. He pressed a kiss there and her hips bucked up, causing him to hold her hips down. His fingers gently parted her silky folds and she whimpered as his longer finger swirled around inside her, stroking her inner walls. She let out a surprised cry when his tongue plunged inside of her and her fingers buried themselves in his hair. Every lick, flick, stroke, and suck set her body on fire and she quivered at the feel of his mouth on her. Her heels dug into the mattress and she struggled against his hold on her. She felt the sensation deep in her stomach and then with a loud cry of his name, she succumbed to her love for him.   


“Pace,” Joey whimpered as he licked her clean and then he was kissing his way up her body again. Pacey pressed a kiss to her lips and she moaned at the taste of herself. Her fingers found the waistband of his boxers and slid them down his body. Her fingers wrapped around his thick length and she heard his groan. Her fingers traced the length of him and he shuttered. Her thumb circled the tip of his erection and she felt him shiver under her touch. “Do you have protection?”   


“My nightstand,” Pacey mumbled. He reached over towards the nightstand and tugged it open. Pacey tried to focus on the task of finding the condom but her fingers were running all over his body, making it incredibly difficult to focus. He finally grabbed a condom and then moved back over her.   


“Let me,” Joey took the condom from him and kissed him quickly. He lifted his chest from hers and watched as she tore the wrapper and then rolled it up his length. The image was so incredibly hot and arousing. Her fingers guided him to her wet center and then she lifted her hands to cup his face in them.   


Pacey locked eyes with Joey and he brushed a piece of hair off her forehead. This was the moment that two had been waiting so long for and they were going to savor every moment of it. Joey kept her eyes locked with the beautiful blue eyes that she loved most in the world and moved her hands to rest on his shoulders. His finger brushed her wet center to make sure she was ready for him, and when he saw she was, he moved into position. Pacey cupped her head between both of his hands, maintained eye contact, and then he rolled his hips forward and entered her in a single, swift motion. They both stayed completely still as they relished the feel of being joined as one again. It felt like they were finally coming home after being lost for so long. They were finally at the place where they both belonged. Pacey pressed a kiss to her lips before he pulled out and then thrust back into her again.   


Joey wrapped her legs around Pacey’s waist and pushed him even further inside of her. With each thrust, Joey felt her heart swell with love. It felt like home with Pacey buried so deep inside of her. This was a connection she had never felt before with anyone but Pacey. No other person made her body feel so alive and so complete. It felt like their bodies were made for each other. He went harder, faster, and deeper. Joey’s fingers ran down his back and grabbed his ass, pushing him even deeper inside of her. Pacey pushed her body to the place it so desperately craved. His thumb found her clit and he rubbed circles around it, pushing her body even further into oblivion.   


“Let go, Jo. I’ve got you,” Pacey whispered into her ear as he thrust even faster into her.   


She laced her fingers through his and held them tight as her body tightened around his. Pacey could feel that she was all the way there and thrust even harder, even faster. Her eyes closed as the ecstasy consumed her entire body and her legs tightened around him. She felt Pacey suck that spot right behind her ear and whisper his love for her. Joey cried out his name as her body reached climax. Seconds after her own orgasm, Pacey buried his face into her neck and with a groan he spilled into his condom.  


“I love you,” Pacey mumbled as their bodies went limp. He collapsed onto her chest and pressed a gentle kiss to each one of her breasts. Joey ran her fingers through his hair and held him close to her, never wanting to let him go.  


“I love you,” Joey whispered as she peppered his face with tiny kisses. He locked eyes with her and smiled softly at her, a smile that made her insides feel like jelly. With one final kiss, Pacey moved out of her and she sighed at the loss of contact. He disposed of the condom and then rolled back over to face her, tugging her into his arms. Her arms wrapped around him and he pressed a kiss to her forehead.   


“That was-,” Pacey started but he wasn’t sure he could find the right word to describe the experience. He wasn’t sure anything could describe how he was feeling right now. He saw the content look on Joey’s face and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.   


“Incredible,” Joey finished for him. “Absolutely perfect.”   


“Perfect,” Pacey agreed. He ran his fingers through her hair and tugged her even closer. Joey nudged her leg between his and pressed a kiss to his bare chest as he lifted the covers over their bodies. “Thank you for coming home, Jo.”   


“Thank you for never giving up on me,” Joey whispered.   


“Never,” Pacey promised as he ran his fingers up the length of her spine. “I’ll never give up on you. This has always been where I’ve belonged.”   


“With you is exactly where I belong,” Joey promised and then caressed his cheek with her fingers. “I’m never running again.”   


I love you so much sweetheart,” Pacey pressed his forehead against hers and kissed her lips.   


“I love you so much, Pacey Witter.”   


The two snuggled close and shared a couple more sweet kisses. With their naked bodies tangled together and their hands gently caressing the other, they finally felt at peace. They finally found their safe harbor. As sleep overtook them, Joey and Pacey vowed to never let the other go again.   



	6. Chapter 6

Joey was the first to open her eyes that next morning. She felt slightly disoriented and dazed as she let her surroundings come into focus. She looked down and saw one bare, strong arm resting across her stomach. Turning her head to the right, her eyes focused on the owner of the arm. Pacey was facing her and his eyes were still closed. His breathing was even and his chest rose and fell with every breath he took. She turned slightly in his embrace, careful not to wake him, and took in his features.   


Pacey always looked so young and innocent when he slept. It was the one time he looked completely at peace and like the world couldn’t hurt him. His long lashes brushed across his cheeks and his smooth skin always made her want to pepper his face with kisses. His dark hair was unruly and messed up with sleep, but she could see a few stray curls, no matter how short he kept his hair now. His strong jaw was sprinkled with stubble and looked a whole lot sexier than it had any right to. She traced a gentle finger across the scar on his right cheek and watched as he stirred slightly. His hold on her tightened and he pulled her even closer, causing a smile to spread across her face. She started to press small kisses across his jawline when she felt him smile.   


“Hmm,” Pacey murmured as he traced a finger across her lower back, causing her to shiver. “Good morning.”   


“Good morning,” Joey ran her fingers through his thick hair and pressed a kiss to his cheek.   


“If you keep touching me like that then we are never going to make it out of this bed,” Pacey peeked open an eye and she was rewarded with a beautiful blue eye.   


“I’m failing to see the problem in that,” Joey wrapped a leg around his waist and ran her hands up his chest. He tugged her closer so the she could see he really didn’t have a problem with that either.   


“How’d you sleep?”   


“Like a rock,” Joey said. “Some of the best sleep I’ve gotten in a long time.”   


“Me too,” Pacey tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and smiled softly at her.   


“I was going to wake up and make you breakfast but your mattress is way too comfortable,” Joey found his hand on her waist and laced their fingers together. His thumb started to trace circles around the back of her hand, almost instantly.   
“The mattress is what kept you here, huh?” Pacey raised an eyebrow.   


“Among other things,” Joey peeked out her tongue from between her teeth. 

“Do tell.”   


“Well,” Joey brushed her nose with his and nibbled his lower lip. “The pillows are pretty comfortable too.”   


“Hussy,” Pacey pinched her butt and she shrieked. “It’s probably for the best that you didn’t make breakfast. I happen to very much like my apartment and I can’t guarantee you wouldn’t have burned it down.”   


“I can make eggs!”   


“Can you?” Pacey retorted with a teasing smile.   


“Watch it, Witter.” Joey rolled them over so that she was straddling him and slowly sat up. Pacey rubbed her thighs and she leaned forward so their faces were only inches apart. “You’ve got to work on your pillow talk if you ever want to get some again.”   


“Says the woman who is currently manhandling me,” Pacey smirked. Joey raised an eyebrow and then slowly wiggled her hips, causing him to hiss. He grabbed her hips to still her but she started to press kisses across his bare chest.   


“From what I can tell,” Joey pressed a kiss and then flicked her tongue across his neck, causing him to moan. “You’re certainly not complaining.”   


“My beautiful girl, naked and in my bed? Why in the world would I complain?” Pacey tightened his grip on her hips.   


“I’ve missed that,” Joey admitted.   


“Missed what?” Pacey traced small circles around her hipbones with his thumbs. Joey brushed a stray piece of hair off his forehead and tugged on his earlobe.   


“You calling me your girl.”   


“You’ve always been my girl, even when we weren’t together,” Pacey promised. Joey saw nothing but sincerity in his eyes and it made her heart flutter. “And you always will be my girl.”   


“Promise?” Joey whispered.   


“I promise,” he nodded and then slowly sat up to kiss her. She wrapped her arms tightly around his shoulders as he tugged her even closer by the waist. Pulling back, Joey pulled him into a tight hug. She was about to lean down to kiss his shoulder when she noticed something on the back of his right shoulder.   


“What’s that?” Joey slid off his lap and next to him. She ran a gentle finger over his shoulder blade and let her eyes take in the sight.   


“Oh,” Pacey chuckled. “I always forget that it’s even there. It’s been so long.”   


“Pace,” Joey’s voice cracked. Her eyes pricked with tears and she suddenly felt the urge to burst into tears. “It’s beautiful.”   


“I’m glad I had a picture of it still,” Pacey said. He could hear the emotion in her voice and rubbed his hand softly over her calf.   


Joey’s finger slowly traced the outline of the tattoo that was now a permanent mark on his body. It took up the majority of his shoulder and she was surprised that she hadn’t noticed it last night. It was an almost exact replica of the True Love and a banner that had those exact words was underneath the drawing of the boat. Her heart pounded in her chest and she leaned forward to press a kiss to it, then another one, and then another one. She was overcome with intense love for her boyfriend. Pacey turned his head to face hers and frowned when he saw the tears on her face. Using the pads of his thumbs, he brushed the tears off her cheeks and then pressed a kiss to her forehead.   


“When did you get it?” Joey asked. The two slid back under the covers and Pacey pulled her into his arms. She nudged her leg between his and wrapped an arm around his waist. Pacey pulled the blanket over the two of them and nuzzled his arm underneath her neck, playing with the hair on the back of her head.  


“About a year ago,” Pacey said. “I was emptying out a box of stuff when I moved into this apartment and came across a picture that you had drawn of her. It was uh, about the time I found out about you and New York guy.”   


“Oh,” Joey frowned.   


“I was just sitting at the marina and looking at the picture. I remembered when you drew it. You were sitting on the dock in Florida and you looked so focused,” Pacey twirled a strand of her hair around his finger. “You ran back onto the boat and told me that you wanted me to keep the picture forever. That no matter where life took us, you always wanted me to hold this picture close because it was a reminder of our summer together.”   


“I remember that,” Joey felt her eyes prick with tears. He had been taking a nap because he had a horrible headache from the sun, so she had decided to use the time to sketch. She had been so proud of the final product that she woke him up to share it with him.   


“I had tucked it away when I was in Boston. I couldn’t look at it because it just hurt too much to remember those times,” Pacey admitted and swallowed a lump. Joey ran her hand up his arm and squeezed his shoulder. “I had honestly forgotten about it until I found it in the box. It was of course the day after I found out about your new relationship. I decided instead of shoving it away again, to embrace it. I was tired of pushing away the good memories because my life wasn’t what I wanted it to be.”   


“So what made you get it tattooed on you?” Joey asked.   


“I always wanted to carry those memories around with me. I want them to always be a part of me and now they are, both emotionally and physically. No matter how hard life has gotten, this tattoo reminds me that there have been happier days too.”   


“I think that’s beautiful,” Joey traced his jawline with her finger.   


“It hurt like a sonofabitch so I can almost guarantee that this will be my only one,” Pacey said and she giggled.   


“So then you’re not going to get my name tattooed on you like you said?” Joey teased.   


“You wish, Potter.” Pacey smirked. He rolled over her and she giggled loudly when he smothered her face with kisses. She flung the comforter away from their bodies and the two picked up right where they left off the night before.   


  


  


Pacey scanned the documents on his desk and then signed what he needed. He had a stack of paperwork that still needed his attention but that could all wait until Monday. He knew it would take hours to finish and he just didn’t have the time for that now. He checked his watch and sighed. Joey should be finishing up dinner with Bessie, Bodie, and Alexander within the next hour or so. She promised that she would come over as soon as she was done but she wanted to spend time with them before leaving.   


After spending the entire afternoon with Joey and Amy, he was more than ready to have Joey all to himself for the rest of the night. He loved his curly haired niece with his whole heart but with Joey leaving for the city tomorrow, their time was limited. He wouldn’t get to see her for well over a week and he was already dreading the distance between them. Despite what he had told Jack, it was going to be hell without her around. After getting used to spending almost every minute with her again, he couldn’t imagine being pulled apart. He knew they didn’t have a choice, but that didn’t mean he liked it. He already missed her and she wasn’t even gone yet.   


Pacey ran a hand over his face and leaned back in his chair. The two barely talked about what was going to happen now that they were apart. They had figured out visitation but that was about it. How much could he call her? How long did he have to wait between calls? What was going to happen when she inevitably ran into Christopher again? That thought made Pacey shudder. He knew that the other man was moving out of the apartment but they still worked together. Joey was still his editor and they would still have to be in contact. He trusted her, he knew it was just professional but that didn’t mean he loved it. He didn’t even really like it. He didn’t like the fact that her ex-boyfriend was probably going to get to see her more than he was.   


This was why the two had never wanted to do distance in the past. It was difficult, it was painful, and it always made their hearts ache. Pacey had a business to run, a rather successful business, and it needed his attention while he was here. He couldn’t spend the entire time thinking about her or worrying about their relationship. He knew he was stressing himself out over nothing though, he knew it was different this time. Pacey and Joey were completely different people than they had been back in high school. They were completely different people from their college days. They were confident, secure in their love, and they completely trusted each other. The years had tested their trust but at the end of the day, it was strong enough to overcome anything.   


With a final groan, he turned off his computer. Pacey knew that he was never going to finish any work and decided to just call it a night. At least at home, he could have a cold beer and pace his living room for a little bit while he waited for her to come over.   


  


  


Joey was finally free of her dinner. She had loved spending time with her family and listening to all of Alex’s stories, but she desperately craved her time with Pacey. It was probably unhealthy how much she needed to be with him all the time but she didn’t care. They only had a limited amount of time before her job pulled her back and she was going to make every second of it count. She grabbed her bags, hugged her family goodbye, and then started her walk over to Pacey’s apartment. He was going to take her to the train station in the morning and she knew that was a goodbye she was dreading.   


The sun was starting to set, which meant her hours left in Capeside were limited. She had an eleven am train and that was going to creep up on them before they realized it. She tugged the jacket she was wearing tighter around her body as she walked towards her boyfriend’s apartment. The breeze was nice and she could smell the water from the marina. Joey could honestly say that she was going to miss Capeside when she said goodbye this time. There were aspects of it that she had taken for granted as a teenager but she was starting to appreciate the small town that was home for so many years.   


As she got closer to Pacey’s apartment, she wondered what distance was going to look like for the two of them. She had never had a serious long distance relationship before. Joey had that short relationship with AJ in high school, if you could even call it that but that was about it. She had broken up with Eddie before he left for California. She and Dawson were never official during their times apart. Pacey had broken up with her before he left that summer at sea. Joey didn’t know what a long distance relationship even looked like.   


How often was too often on the phone? Were surprise visits okay? How long should you wait before visiting again? Joey knew her major problem was going to be her jealousy and insecurities. She had always been a notoriously jealous person, especially when it came to Pacey, and that hadn’t changed all these years later. She knew how attracted other women were to him and just how charming he really was. He had never given her a reason not to trust him but that didn’t stop the ache in her stomach at all the beautiful women that would get to see her boyfriend on a regular basis. The women that got to be around him when she couldn’t.   


Joey shook her head as she reached his apartment complex because she knew she was being silly. There was no reason to stress herself out over issues that weren’t even issues. She saw Pacey sitting on the steps outside and felt those little flutters of butterflies inside her stomach at the sight of him. He had the sleeves of his blue work shirt rolled up, revealing his toned arms. The top three buttons were undone and his hair was messed up, clearly from running his hands over it. When he saw her, his face lit up almost instantly and he smiled wide at her.   


“Hey beautiful,” Pacey greeted her as she got closer.   


“Hey yourself,” Joey walked up the few steps and dropped down next to him. He leaned over to kiss her and she squeezed his bicep. She pulled back and smiled her own brilliant smile that erupted his own set of butterflies. “When did you get home from work? Have you been waiting long?”   


“No,” he shook his head. “I got home maybe twenty minutes ago. I was going crazy sitting in my office and figured since I wasn’t going to get anything done, I may as well just come home to wait for you.”   


“I forgot how much Bess loves to talk,” Joey shook her head in amusement.   


“You Potter girls love to ramble on and on,” Pacey teased. She nudged his shoulder and they laughed. Pacey wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she rested her head on his shoulder. “So, this is it huh?”   


“This most certainly is not it,” Joey insisted. She moved closer to him and took his free hand in her own.   


“I know,” he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “It’s going to be weird not seeing you every day. I’ve gotten so used to it again.”   


“But we’ll talk every day, right?” Joey started to play with his fingers and nuzzled her cheek into his shoulder.   


“We’ll talk so much that you’ll get tired of me, Potter.”   


“I haven’t gotten tired of you yet, Witter. I have a feeling I’m never going to get tired of you,” she insisted.   


“You know what I was thinking about today?” Pacey asked.   


“What’s that?”   


“It’s been almost twenty years since we met each other,” he said. She sat up and looked at him.   


“Oh wow,” she widened her eyes. “You’re totally right. It was the August before we started first grade. It was at the Butterfly House. You refused to let me inside because Doug had you guard the door. You looked at me like I had cooties.”   


“I was doing my job!” Pacey insisted and she raised an eyebrow. “And in my defense, I was six. Of course you had cooties.”   


“You got so mad that I wanted to come over to Dawson’s house because it was supposed to be just the two of you.”   


“You were stealing my best friend from me!”   


“I wanted to be your friend too!”   


“No you didn’t,” he playfully glared at her.   


“You’re right, I didn’t.” She retorted and his jaw dropped slightly, clearly surprised by her response. “You pulled on my pigtails and told me that I wasn’t allowed to hang out with you two because I was a girl.”   


“Pulling on pigtails was how I flirted,” he shrugged.   


“You never pulled any other girls pigtails!”   


“Exactly, Potter.” Pacey leveled her with a look and she blushed.   


“You didn’t not have a crush on me at six years old,” she insisted.   


“Well maybe not in the sense that I wanted to kiss you,” he smirked and she giggled. “But I was definitely intrigued by you. You were the only person who ever stood up to me and still played with me after. Of course I was interested.”   


“We were so naïve back then,” Joey sighed and curled up into his side. Pacey’s arm wrapped around her waist and she wrapped her hands around his bicep.   


“Nah,” he shook his head. “We were waiting for our perfect moment. Then I realized there was no such thing as a perfect moment and you have to make the perfect moment. I realized it wasn’t just one perfect moment with you, it was a bunch of different perfect moments.”   


“We have had some incredibly perfect moments together, haven’t we?” Joey rested her chin on his shoulder and looked into his blue eyes.   


“I’d say so,” he nodded before pressing a kiss to her nose.   


“What’s your favorite moment?”   


“I can only pick one?” Pacey asked. She nodded and he took a deep breath. “Well I want it on the record that I love all the time we spend together.”   


“Duly noted,” she giggled.   


“It’s from high school, when we were dating. The two of us were at the beach house. I was sitting on the couch, playing video games and you were sitting next to me on the couch with a sketch book in your lap. Your legs were in my lap and you kept annoyingly wiggling your toes will you sketched.”   


“I was concentrating!” Joey protested.   


“Your freakish finger toes kept brushing my arm and distracting me from my game,” he retorted. She just stuck her tongue out at him and he laughed. “Anyway, I remember you put your sketch book in your lap and just stared at me. I pretended to not notice at first because I liked that you just wanted to look at me with that look of love in your eyes.”  


“I looked at you like that a lot, Pace.”   


“I know,” he rubbed her thigh and smiled at her. “But it’s what you said after that made it even more special. You scooted down the couch towards me and ran your fingers through my hair before kissing my cheek. You told me that this was what you wanted. You wanted us to be like this forever. You wanted our own house and our own television and our own couch. You looked right into my eyes, right into my heart, and told me that you wanted to come home to me every night for the rest of your life.”   


“And then you pounced on me,” Joey whispered. A tear slipped down her cheek and instead of brushing it away, Pacey leaned forward to press a kiss to it. “That never changed, Pace. No matter what I said or what I did all those years after, my heart always wanted that.”   


“Me too,” Pacey pressed his forehead to hers and they just sat there silently for a minute. “What about you? What was your favorite moment?”   


“When I saw you in Civilization for the first time after our summer apart,” Joey admitted. Pacey furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, clearly not expecting that response from her.   


“We weren’t even talking.”   


“I know,” she nodded. “But you kept your promise to me and I knew in my heart why you ended up in Boston. You told me that you planned to be wherever I was. We always said that it didn’t matter where our paths took us, they would always lead back to each other. The minute I saw you in that kitchen, I just knew. I knew that no matter what happened between us, we were still us. I knew that on some subconscious level, you chose Boston because I was there.”   


“I did,” he whispered. “I had the option to get off closer to Capeside but I told them I was going to get off in Boston. I was always going to end up in Boston, whether we were a couple or not. Like I’ve always told you, proximity is a good thing.”   


“I felt like my heart was slowly piecing itself back together when I saw you again,” Joey explained. “You’ve always been more than just my boyfriend, Pace. You’re my best friend, my other half. You are my person.”   


“That’s very deep, Potter.” Pacey said but she could hear the emotion in his voice and knew how much those words meant to him. “You’ve always been my best friend, too. There’s never been someone I trust the way I trust you. I’ve never been able to talk to anyone else the way I can talk to you.”   


“But I do have to say the ski trip was a very close second,” Joey smirked and he laughed.   


“Because of all the skiing, right?” Pacey teased.   


“Well duh,” she playfully rolled her eyes. “I can’t think of anything else that would have made it more memorable.”   


“Lindley falling flat on her ass was pretty funny,” Pacey said. The two felt their hearts get heavy almost instantly and they tightened their grips on each other.   


“Do you remember when I caught the two of you in the coat closet?” Joey bit her lip.   


“When you absolutely let me have it?” Pacey asked. “That was the night Jen first mentioned that she thought I liked you.”   


“She was always ahead of the two of us when it came to our relationship,” Joey said.   


“She was our biggest cheerleader,” Pacey nodded.   


“Oh god,” she widened her eyes and then giggled. “Do you remember when she was a cheerleader?”   


“And she wore those fishnet tights,” Pacey smirked. “And Henry bid all that money for one kiss with her.”   


“I miss her so much, Pace.”   


“I do too,” he tugged her into his arms and she buried her face in his neck. They held each other tight as they mourned the loss of their dear friend and cherished the moments they had shared with her. Pacey pulled back and ran his fingers through her hair. “What do you say we move this inside?”   


“To sleep?” Joey raised a teasing eyebrow.   


“Sure, Potter.” Pacey smirked in return. “To sleep.”   


“Although,” Joey slowly stood up and pulled him up with her. His hands went to her waist and he pulled her flat against his body. “I’m not so tired.”   


“That’s a strange coincidence,” Pacey pressed a kiss to her neck and then whispered in her ear. “Because neither am I.”   


“So strange,” Joey mumbled and then tugged him inside, fully intent on enjoying their last night together.   


  


  


“Don’t cry, Potter.” Pacey brushed away the tears from her cheeks and rested his forehead against hers.   


“I don’t want to leave yet,” Joey whispered. She grabbed the front of Pacey’s sweatshirt and pulled him close to her.   


The two were huddled together at the train station, and Joey had about ten minutes before she needed to board her train. Their night together ended faster than either of them expected. After two glorious rounds of love making, they fell asleep completely content and snuggled together in each other’s arms. Pacey woke Joey up for another love making session before they needed to shower and make their way to the train station. They stopped for coffee on the way, both too anxious to consider eating. Now they clung together and Pacey knew that he needed to be the strong one. He knew that he was going to have to be the one to get her on that train home, no matter how much it killed him.   


“One week, Jo. I will be there in one week,” Pacey promised. He pressed a kiss to her temple and then another to her cheek.   


“One week,” she nodded but it wasn’t soon enough. How was she supposed to make it through the week without him?   


“And then I will be there with you for three whole days,” Pacey wrapped his arms around her waist and held her close. Was it too soon to start counting down the days?   


“I can’t wait,” Joey wrapped her arms around his shoulders and buried her face in his chest. He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. They both heard the announcement for Joey’s train and the moment they had been dreading was finally upon them.   


“Hey,” Pacey grabbed her face in his hands and tilted her head up to look at him. “I love you, Jo. Whether I’m here or there, I’m in love with you.”   


“I love you too, Pace. I’m so in love with you,” Joey promised. He smiled at her and then leaned down to kiss her. Their mouths moved together and his tongue gently caressed her own. He pulled back and then pressed a couple more kisses on her mouth, just like when she first proclaimed her love for him. She smiled and then hugged him tight.   


“Call me when you get home, okay?” Pacey whispered in her ear.   


“I will,” she nodded.   


Joey kissed him once more and then reluctantly pulled away, grabbing her bag. He kissed her forehead and then nodded in the direction of her train. Pacey watched as she walked away from him and he felt his heart ache. He wanted her to come back and come home with him. He wanted to get on the train with her and run to New York. Just before she stepped out of sight, Joey turned around to face him. She waved and then blew him a kiss. Pacey pretended to catch the kiss and then blew one back at her, which she pretended to catch and place on her lips. He laughed and waved as she stepped out of sight. He sighed, the first day of his new normal was here. He just hoped they would make it.   



	7. Chapter 7

“Don’t hang up, don’t hang up!” Joey rushed over to where her cellphone was ringing loudly on the night stand. She tightened the towel around her body and knew she had about two more rings before it went to voicemail. She grabbed the small device and quickly answered, her tone breathless, “hello?”   


“Potter?” Pacey’s voice sounded amused through the phone.   


“Pace! Hi,” Joey dropped onto the bed and bit her lip. It had been two days since she returned to New York and she missed him so much.   


“Why are you out of breath?” Pacey asked and then his voice turned teasing. “Thinking about me?”   


“You wish,” Joey retorted and she heard his deep chuckle. “I was getting out of the shower when I heard my phone ringing and ran to answer it.”   


“Showering, huh?” Pacey’s voice turned husky and her entire body blushed. States apart and he could still make every part of her body tingle with anticipation. “So does that mean you’re naked?”   


“Again, you wish.” Joey giggled. “I’ve got the fluffiest towel ever on.”   


“Close enough,” Pacey murmured. She could almost hear the smirk in his voice and loved that he could go from teasing to seductive in less than a minute.   


“And what about you?” Joey decided to play along. “Are you rocking one of those hideous Hawaiian shirts?”   


“Less than five minutes of conversation and my wardrobe is already being mocked,” Pacey pouted. “For your information, Potter. I’m sitting at my desk, so I was forced to wear adult clothes.”   


“Oh poor baby,” she pacified.   


“I had to brush my hair and everything.”   


“Wow,” she mocked. “You really are in full on adult mode.”   


“Well considering I have to meet a supplier in less than an hour, I figured it was best to actually have pants on.” Pacey teased. Joey felt her stomach clench because she knew that Maddie Allen was someone that he occasionally had meetings with, and she always knew how those ended.   


“Oh?” Joey swallowed down the insecurities. “What kind of supplier?”   


“Liquor,” he said. He lifted up some papers on his desk and cradled the phone between his ear and shoulder blade. “We have a meeting once a month to make sure I don’t run out of liquor for the bar.”   


“Well I’m sure they will be very grateful for you brushing your hair,” Joey said. He heard the underlying message in her tone and knew she was battling insecurity.   


“I’m sure Tyler,” Pacey emphasized the name. “Will be very thankful for that.”   


“Oh,” she mumbled. The knot in her stomach untangled and she let out a sigh of relief.   


“I miss you, Jo.” Pacey’s voice was soft and full of the tenderness he felt for her. Joey pressed her hand to her heart and smiled.   


“I miss you, Pace.” Joey whispered. “Only five more days.”   


“I’m counting down the seconds,” Pacey said and she genuinely believed that.   


“Is there anything you want to do when you’re here?” Joey asked. She ran her fingers through her wet hair and looked at the clock on her nightstand, knowing she still had some time before she needed to get ready.   


“Besides smother you with kisses?” Pacey asked.   


“Yes,” she blushed. “Besides that. Something that gets us out of the apartment for a few hours.”   


“Do we have to?” Pacey whined. She rolled her eyes, knowing he couldn’t see her, and then shook her head. She knew that if he had his way, they would stay inside and in her bed all day and all night. She most certainly would not complain but she wanted to show him around.   


“It will be good for us, Witter.”   


“If you say so,” he mumbled. She giggled at his pouting tone and it made her miss him even more. She wanted to kiss the pout away. “I’ll tell you what, Josephine. It’s your home and I’m the guest, you get to plan an entire date night for us.”   


“You’re giving me full control?” She teased. So many ideas started to rush through her mind and there was so much she wanted to with him, and to him. She blushed at that last thought and shook it away.   


“Do with me what you’d like. I am at your mercy, Potter.”   


“I like the sound of that,” her voice dropped to a seductive tone and he swallowed hard, adjusting in his chair. “You be careful for what you wish for, Pace.”   


“I already got what I wished for. The rest is just an incredible bonus,” Pacey said. She could hear the sincerity in his words and it made her heart swell with love. She heard a knock on the door from his side of the phone and sighed, knowing their time was up. His tone was a disappointed sigh when he spoke again. “I gotta go, sweetheart. Duty calls.”   


“I’ll call you tonight,” Joey promised.   


“Until then beautiful,” Pacey said. “I love you. Have a great day.”   


“I love you too,” Joey said. They said goodbye once more and then she heard the click from his end.   


Joey tossed the phone back onto the nightstand and frowned. She already missed his voice and their effortless banter. After spending almost every minute with him last week, the last two days had been such an adjustment. Pacey typically called her in the morning, always starting her day off with a smile. They didn’t get to talk too long in the mornings, one of them usually in a rush for work. They would text throughout the day and sometimes she called on her lunch break. Then right before she went to bed, she always went to sleep first, Joey would call him from bed. Their calls always lasted over an hour, sometimes two hours, and it was exactly what she needed before falling asleep. His voice always soothed her to sleep.   


She made her way over to her closet and tried to decide what to wear that day. She had to meet with two different authors to go over their manuscripts and she wanted to look nice for those meetings. She ultimately selected a light blue dress with her favorite black heels and black sweater. Her hair dried in waves around her shoulders and she added a touch of mascara. Joey slid on her mom’s bracelet, her favorite ring, and was ready to head out the door as she grabbed her purse on the way. She had just enough time to stop for coffee before the long day ahead of her.   


After a quick cab ride and a stop at her favorite coffee shop, Joey was walking into the publishing house that had been her place of employment for over the last year. She greeted a few coworkers before finally getting to her desk. Her purse was placed under her desk and she slid into the chair, rolling her neck around as she got ready for her first meeting that was going to take place in less than an hour. The manuscript was good, not her favorite, but she knew it had potential to sell. Joey was about to power up her computer when one of her coworkers slid a chair over to her desk. She looked over and internally groaned when she saw it was Hannah, the office gossip.   


“Hey Hannah,” Joey politely greeted. The young editor was always the first to find out the office gossip and loved to spread it around. In a way, she reminded her a little bit of Audrey. She was so full of energy and life. She was always the loudest in the room and had a new boyfriend every month.   


“Hi Joey!” Hannah’s greeting was cheery and her blue eyes were wide. The blonde had been trying to strike up a friendship with Joey since she started working here less than six months ago. It wasn’t easy to get the brunette to open up but she was determined to become friends with her. “You’ve been gone so long.”   


“I had a family emergency back home,” Joey said. Her eyes drifted to the picture of Jen on her desk and she swallowed back the lump forming in her throat.   


“Oh,” Hannah frowned. “Yeah, I heard about your friend. I’m so sorry.”   


“Thank you,” Joey nodded.   


“I heard your meeting Christopher today,” Hannah said and then winced. “That’s gotta be awkward.”   


“Why would it be awkward?” Joey’s mouth formed a tight line. She had honestly forgotten that he was her second meeting today and was dreading it. She really hoped that everyone in the office hadn’t heard about the break-up but she knew it was only a matter of time.   


“Because, uh, well.” Hannah stuttered over her words and scratched her neck awkwardly. “Well because of the break-up and the new beau.”   


“Does everyone know?” Joey lowered her voice and looked around.   


“Well Christopher was here last week while you were gone and he looked so sad and told us that he was moving out,” Hannah explained. Joey sighed and twirled her bracelet around her wrist.   


“Oh,” she sighed and then raised an eyebrow. She hadn’t told anyone at work about Pacey, so she was curious how anyone knew. “Why do you think I have a new boyfriend?”   


“Caitlin heard you on the phone in the break room yesterday and she said you had this glow to you. Then she heard you tell the other person that you loved them with a bright smile on your face,” Hannah explained. “She kind of assumed. Oh god, we shouldn’t have assumed. I’m so sorry.”   


“It’s okay,” Joey couldn’t help but chuckle.   


“So?” Hannah prodded. “Or wait, you don’t have to tell me. But you can if you want to. You know if you want someone to talk to. I can be a good friend!”   


“Hannah,” Joey rested a hand on her arm to stop her rambling. Moments like these, she reminded her of Andie. If Audrey and Andie were mixed into one person, they would be Hannah. The thought made Joey giggle. “Take a deep breath. Yes, I’m seeing someone.”   


“Oh!” Hannah’s eyes widened in excitement. “You met someone while you were back home?”   


“Not exactly,” Joey sighed. She really didn’t want to go into her entire history with Pacey with her coworker. “He’s an ex-boyfriend. I’ve known him since I was six and we reconnected while I was back home.”   


“Aww,” Hannah gushed. “That’s a really long time to know someone.”   


“I’m from a small town,” Joey chuckled.   


“What’s his name?” Hannah asked.   


“Pacey,” Joey said and felt herself smile at even the mention of his name. She pointed at the group picture of them on her desk. It was from Amy’s first birthday party. Hannah followed her finger and widened her eyes when she saw her boyfriend.   


“Damn,” Hannah whistled. Pacey was so handsome and so sexy and the exact kind of guy she would go for. “Go girl.”   


“Thanks,” Joey blushed and then shook her head. She was done talking about her personal life and her relationship. She had already shared way more than she even wanted to. She checked her watch and was grateful that she needed to leave. “I have to head to my meeting.”   


“Right of course,” Hannah nodded and stood up. “I’ll see you later.”   


“See you,” Joey nodded and then headed off in the direction of conference room for her meeting. She was ready for this day to be over and it had just started.   


  


  


Pacey was having one of those days where he wished he had just stayed in bed. Two of his servers had called out sick. His liquor guy was almost an hour late for their meeting. His computer froze right in the middle of sending out an important email. His head was starting to hurt and he was ready to head home. He knew that running a restaurant would have it’s less than glamorous days but those were the days that always left him in an incredibly sour mood. He told Melissa, the hostess, that he was unavailable to anyone that needed and closed himself in his office. He needed ten uninterrupted minutes before he dealt with the rest of his day.   


Pacey took the little basketball that was sitting on his desk and tossed it towards the hoop attached to his wall. He completely missed the hoop and groaned. Figured that he wouldn’t even make that shot, given how his day was going. He ran his hands over his face and dropped his head back on the chair. He contemplated calling Joey, just to hear her voice, but decided against it. He knew that she had two meetings that day and was probably busy. There was a knock on his door and he groaned. All he had asked for was ten quiet minutes but apparently that was too much to ask for.   


“Yeah come in,” was his grumpy response. The door opened and he saw Jack standing there, a hesitant smile on his face.   


“Bad time?” Jack asked.   


“Do you ever have one of those days where you just want to go back to bed and start all over?” Pacey rubbed his eyes and then sat up.   


“I teach high school kids,” Jack shot him a look. “Of course I do.”   


“Fair point,” Pacey laughed. Jack dropped into the chair across from his friend’s desk and let out a tired sigh. “Well, you look about as happy as I do.”   


“Doug and I got into a fight and school sucked,” Jack groaned. “Plus, I have an entire stack of tests to grade and a one year old to take care of.”   


“What did Dougie do this time?” Pacey asked. He felt an incredible amount of sympathy for his friend. In the span of a week, he had lost his best friend and inherited a one year old. Plus, he was trying to navigate his relationship and keep up with his job.   


“Your mom invited us to dinner tomorrow,” Jack said.   


“Yikes,” Pacey winced. “Why?”   


“I guess she caught wind of our relationship and now she wants to talk to the two of us,” Jack explained and then rolled his eyes. “She’d like to meet the man who turned her precious son gay.”   


“Please tell me she didn’t actually say that,” Pacey narrowed his eyes. He knew that his mom and dad would have trouble adjusting to Doug’s coming out, especially his dad. He wasn’t sure Doug actually told them and that would only make them angrier.   


“More or less,” Jack mumbled. “What are the odds your dad will be drunk?”   


“Is the sky blue?”   


“That’s what I thought,” he sighed.   


“So why the fight with Doug?” Pacey asked.   


“He doesn’t want to go. I told him that we can’t avoid them forever, it’s a small town and we are bound to run into them eventually. I said it was better to do it in private but he’s a stubborn ass,” Jack groaned. “I convinced him we are going but he’s not thrilled.”   


“I didn’t think he would be.”   


“What was it like when they met Joey after you two started dating?” Jack asked. “I mean, with your dad arresting her dad and all.”   


“You mean when they met Josie?” Pacey rolled his eyes. It still annoyed him to this day that his mother refused to call Joey by her actual name.   


“Josie?” Jack repeated, furrowing his brows in confusion. "Who the heck is Josie?"   


“My mom calls her Josie. No matter how many times I tell her it’s Joey,” Pacey explained. “She knows it’s Joey too but refuses to actually use her real name. My dad just grunted at her and got drunk.”   


“Do they know you two are back together?”   


“Well if they do, I certainly didn’t tell them.” Pacey shrugged.   


“Ugh,” Jack groaned and rubbed his eyes. “I need a drink.”   


“Well,” Pacey smirked. “I have an entire stocked bar at your leisure. It’s on the house.”   


“Let’s go,” Jack nodded his head towards the door. “It looks like you need a drink just as much as I do.”   


“Lead the way my friend,” Pacey stood up and followed his friend out and towards the bar.   


  


  


Joey took a sip of her coffee and crossed one leg over the other. She wiggled her foot nervously as she waited in the conference room. With a look at her watch, she realized that Christopher was fifteen minutes late. That wasn’t too shocking, he was horrible at time management, but it was irritating. Joey had wanted to get this meeting over as quick as she could but that didn’t seem to be likely. She knew he was going to mention their break-up. She could already imagine how the conversation would go and was frustrated that she had to have it at work.   


Joey knew that she owed him answers, she knew that he deserved more than a break-up over the phone. She remembered how angry she had been in college when Eddie broke up with her once by just disappearing and then the next time by letter. Joey had cared for Christopher. He had treated her well and genuinely loved her. If she had been asked to describe their relationship, she would describe it as comfortable. They were never meant to be serious, they were never meant to last long term. Joey had loved him to the best of her ability, just like she had in her previous relationships. It wasn’t their fault that they were always compared to someone else.   


Jen had once joked to her when they were living together that she felt bad for all the guys that tried to go up against Pacey. She had said that they were always compared to him and that the comparison never lived up. Jen teased her that Pacey had set the bar real high for any potential love interest of hers and they would always come up short. Joey, being in denial of her feelings for Pacey, had rolled her eyes and just waved her off. Deep in her heart, she knew the blonde was right. Whether she realized she was doing it or not, Joey always compared potential love interests to Pacey. How could she not? He was the best boyfriend and treated her exactly how she deserved to. He was her one true love and he always would be.   


“Hey,” Christopher stepped into the conference room and startled her from her thoughts.   


“Christopher,” Joey said as she sat up straighter. “Hi.”   


“Sorry I’m late,” Christopher walked over and took a seat across from her. “I’d say the taxi got lost but we both know I was just running late.”   


“We do,” she chuckled. The two sat there quietly for a minute, both adjusting to being in the same room again. She shifted in her chair as he seemed to be soaking in her appearance.   


“You look good,” he finally said. “I’m really sorry about Jen. I know how much she meant to you, how much she meant to all of you.”   


“Thank you Christopher,” she smiled kindly. “I’m sorry too. I’m sorry for the way I ended things. You didn’t deserve that.”   


“Break-ups happen,” he shrugged. Joey could see that he was upset but trying to keep a disinterested façade. “So? Who is it?”   


“What?” Joey furrowed her brows.   


“Come on,” he shot her an annoyed look. “You look happy. Despite the sadness I can see in your eyes, you’re glowing. Who is the guy?”   


“Why does it have to be because of a guy?” She retorted. He just raised an eyebrow in return, clearly not believing anything coming out of her mouth. “Christopher, I really don’t want to have this conversation with you.”   


“Petey or Colby?” Christopher asked.   


“Excuse me?” Joey narrowed her eyes.   


“I’m not stupid, Joey. I know you watched that show because it was tied to your childhood. I know that Sam was based off of you so clearly those two were serious loves from your past,” Christopher said. She hated how observant he was. “So? Which one? Did you chose Colby or Petey?”   


“It’s a show,” Joey mumbled.   


“Joey,” Christopher softened his voice. “As hurt as I am, I just want to see you happy. It’s clearly not with me and the guy you’re with clearly does make you happy.”   


“Petey,” she sighed and then rolled her eyes at herself. “I mean, Pacey. It’s Pacey.”   


“I should’ve known,” he mumbled. “The man you never talk about.”   


“Christopher,” she shook her head.   


“Do you think I was oblivious?” Christopher asked. “I heard stories about Jen, Jack, Dawson, Audrey, and even Andie. Every time Pacey’s name came up, you got quiet and uncomfortable. It’s like you were afraid to talk about him, afraid of what it would reveal.”   


“Can we talk about something else?” Joey asked. Talking about Pacey with Christopher was the last thing she wanted to do. She didn’t want to hurt him anymore than she already had. “Let’s discuss your manuscript.”   


“Fine,” he mumbled. Joey had to resist the urge to roll her eyes because he always acted like a child when he didn’t get what he wanted. With a discreet glance at her watch, Joey counted down the minutes until she could call Pacey.   


  


  


Joey grabbed her mug of hot tea and headed towards her bedroom. She changed into Pacey’s Bruins tee shirt and the sailboat boxers that she had stolen from him last week. Joey turned on her lamp and then turned off the main light. Once that was all set, she climbed into her bed and grabbed her phone off the nightstand. She saw it was eight-thirty and she figured Pacey would be home by now. At least she hoped that he was. Quickly finding his contact information, she hit the call button and lifted the phone to her ear as she waited for him to answer. After two rings, she heard the voice she loved so much.   


“Finally,” Pacey sighed into the phone. “All that’s gotten me through this day was knowing that I would get to hear your voice at the end of it.”   


“Bad day, sweetheart?” Joey frowned into the phone.   


“It was a day,” he said. “Just about everything that could go wrong, did.”   


“Tell me about it,” she said and he did. She listened and offered sympathetic words where she could. She would give anything to be able to pull him into her arms and kiss his bad day away.   


“But Jack ordered pizza and I got Amy cuddles so I guess it wasn’t that terrible,” he finished off.   


“You’re going to spoil that girl so much,” she said. Pacey with Amy was one of the cutest sights in the world. He was so incredible with children and she knew he would be a great dad one day. The idea made her heart flutter and had to shake the thoughts away. Now was not the time to be having those thoughts.   


“Oh absolutely,” he said. “How about you? How was your day, sweetheart?”   


“Long,” Joey groaned. “I had to meet with Christopher today.”   


“How did that go?” Pacey asked. He remembered her telling him last night about the meeting and that she was not looking forward to it. He knew how terrible she felt for hurting Christopher and that he was bound to address it.   


“Tense,” she sighed. “He is obviously upset. He asked me who I chose, Petey or Colby.”   


“Oh god,” he groaned. “Wait, he watches that show?”   


“He watched it with me, doofus.”   


“I hope the rest of the world never realizes that we are based off characters from a television show. I don’t need random guests coming up to me about that show,” Pacey said.   


“At least your character has fun!” Joey protested. “Mine just whines and pines.”   


“Which was accurate,” Pacey teased.   


“Watch it mister.”   


“Are you okay though?” Pacey asked. “I know how nervous you were about seeing Christopher again.”   


“I’m okay,” she said. “The rest of the meeting was business and he didn’t bring anything up okay. I’m sorry he’s hurt, but I’ll never be sorry for loving you.”   


“You’re so cute when you get mushy on me,” Pacey teased but she could hear that her words had affected him.   


“Speaking of cute,” she chuckled. “My coworker thinks you’re hot.”   


“Well duh,” he said. Joey could almost hear the smirk in his tone.   


“You’re so cute when you’re delusional,” Joey retorted. “She pestered me for information about you the minute she saw me. I showed her a picture of you and you could almost see the heart eyes.”   


“A girl who loves to gossip? That sounds like your worst nightmare,” he laughed.   


“If Andie and Audrey were meshed into one person, it would be Hannah.”   


“Yikes,” Pacey winced.   


“So obviously that explains why she’s attracted to you,” Joey teased.   


“Cute,” he deadpanned. “Speaking of cute, you wouldn’t happen to know where my Bruins tee shirt is? I have been looking for that shirt all night.”   


“You’ll have to be more specific,” she bit her bottom lip and looked down at her outfit.   


“The black shirt. I’ve had it forever and you used to wear it all the time,” Pacey said.   


“Did you check the pile of dirty laundry on your floor?” Joey chewed her bottom lip to stop from laughing.   


“No-,” he started and then heard her giggle. “You thief! You took it, didn’t you?”   


“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” she giggled. “I also have no idea where your sailboat boxers are either.”   


“Jo!” Pacey whined. “Those are my favorite.”   


“Well they look super cute on me right now,” she whispered seductively. “All curled up in my bed. Covering my smooth, long legs.”   


“Are you trying to seduce me so I will forget you stole my clothes?” Pacey asked, and she heard the hitch in his voice. She knew that her words had worked and that he was picturing her in bed right now.   


“I would never,” she insisted. “But I have to say, Pace. I wish you were here because these boxers would look much better on my floor.”   


“You’re killing me, Potter.” Pacey groaned and she giggled.   


“Pace?” Joey softened her voice. She could almost picture him on the other end of the phone. His long legs stretched out in front of him. His hair all tousled and probably sticking out all over the place. His arm stretched out towards where she should be and leaving the spot next to him open for her.   


“Yeah, sweetheart?”   


“I miss you so much,” she whispered.   


“I miss you more,” his voice softened. “So much, beautiful.”   


“Will you read to me for a little bit?” Joey asked.   


“Anything in particular?” He asked.   


“Anything you want,” she said. She heard him rustling around, obviously looking for a book. When she heard him settle back down, she cuddled up further into her pillows.   


“Hey Jo?”   


“Yeah?”   


“I love you so much,” Pacey said. The tenderness in his words almost brought tears to her eyes and she pressed her palm to her chest. Five more days.   


“I love you so much,” Joey whispered.   


Joey heard him make a kissing sound, to which she immediately reciprocated. Curling up on her right side, she listened as he started to read to her. She reached out her hand to the right side of the bed, where Pacey was supposed to be. Five more days, only five more days until he was back in her arms. The time would drag but it would all be worth it in the end. Being with Pacey again would make all of it worth it.   



	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick note! For the sake of this story, pretend the whole conversation between Joey and Dawson about being soulmates never happened. They acknowledged their friendship was just friendship but that's it. In my story, they aren't soulmates. They are just good friends and that's it. As always, thank you so much for the incredible support! I love hearing feedback from you guys and seeing what you think! Enjoy!

Joey checked her watch for what felt like the tenth time in the last half hour. Her gaze drifted towards her front door and willed there to be a knock. When it remained silent, like it had been the last few times she looked, she sighed. Pacey was due in for his visit tonight. She had wanted to meet him at the train station but he told her to wait at home and relax. He wasn’t sure what time he would be able to get away from the restaurant and didn’t want her to have to go out of her way to meet him. He had gotten her address the night before and was more than okay to just take a taxi over there.   


She looked at her watch once more and then sighed. 5:34. Joey hoped that he was there soon and that she wasn’t going to have to wait all night for him. She decided that she couldn’t sit on the couch any longer. There was nothing interesting on T.V. and she couldn’t focus on her book to save her life. Standing up from the couch, she made her way towards the bedroom. Once inside, Joey walked towards the closet and dropped down into a sitting position. She dragged out the small box in the corner and ran her hand over the top of it. Pacey was written on the top of it and she lifted the lid. It had been at least a year since she allowed herself to open this box but it felt like the perfect time while she waited for him.   


After their break-up in high school, as hurt as she was, Joey couldn’t bring herself to get rid of anything that reminded her of Pacey. Little mementos and pictures from their relationship that she had always cherished were placed inside of this box for safe keeping. Whenever Joey felt sad or missed him, she would find herself looking inside. The box had followed her to college and to New York. No matter where she went, Joey could never bring herself to leave it behind. No one knew about this box, there wasn’t a single person she wanted to tell, including Pacey. Maybe it was girly and silly, but this box was so special to her.   


Looking inside, a smile immediately filled her face. Right on top was the picture that Dawson had taken of the two of them at his family Christmas party in high school. Pacey had whispered something sweet into her ear and she couldn’t stop herself from smiling as he held her close. Joey placed that on the ground next to her because she wanted to hang it up now that they were back together. Right after that, she found another picture that she had always loved. Jen had taken it with Dawson’s camera and it was her favorite picture of them. They had all been playing football in the backyard of the B&B. Joey had the football in her hands and Pacey had snuck up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her off the ground. Her knees were bent and the smile showed that she had been cracking up.   


With a shake of her head, Joey placed it on top of the picture from Christmas. She found the movie tickets from their first date. The brochure from the ski lodge. A seashell that he had found her in Florida. A test he had gotten an A on that he was certain he would fail. The receipt from Kmart. The corsage from senior prom and the one from Harley’s prom. Her finger touched a small ring at the bottom of the box. It was a heart shaped ring that he had gotten her for her eighteenth birthday. Joey refused to ever take it off when they were dating and when she had after their break-up, it felt like a piece of her was gone. She slid the ring onto her ring finger and held her hand up with a smile. Still a perfect fit.  


Joey was suddenly overwhelmed by all of these memories. She had been in love with Pacey for almost ten years now and this box only showed the beginning of their love story. It showed two teenagers trying to navigate the waters of what true love really meant. Pacey may not have been her first love, but he was her first real love. He was the first person that ever saw Joey for the person she was, not the person he wanted her to be. He never expected her to be anyone other than herself. He didn’t care what made her happy, he just wanted her to be happy. He had loved her when she was a tomboy. He had loved her when she didn’t love herself. Pacey had loved her when she felt unlovable.   


She flicked a tear off her cheek. Joey tried to live without regrets. There was no point in dwelling on the past and what you couldn’t change. She liked to believe that every decision she had made in her life had made her the person she was today. All the heartbreaks, all the confusion, all the betrayals. They were all the build blocks that made Joey Potter the person she really was. But that didn’t mean there weren’t times she’d want to change. One moment in particular had always been the most prominent.   


Joey ran her finger over the corsage from Harley’s prom and closed her eyes. Pacey’s face from that night had haunted her for weeks. The look of utter defeat and heartbreak had followed her around. He didn’t talk to her for at least two weeks, not that she blamed him, and those two weeks were unbearable. She had been so wrapped up in trying to make her relationship work that she had never even given him the apology or explanation that he truly deserved. Everything he had said to her that night was true and it terrified her. She had been so young and he had been so certain. He was sure of their relationship and the future. He had finally become the man she had always known he could be. He was confident, secure, and sure of himself. So what had she done? She had shattered his hope and broken his heart. She was thankful that he had even given her another chance after that.   


She slid the box back into the closet and pulled her knees up to her chest. She needed to see his face. Joey needed to feel his arms wrapped around her and his lips against hers. Joey took the two pictures off the floor and made her way back to the living room. She placed the picture of them from Christmas on the television stand and smiled. Then she took the other picture of them and placed it on the side table next to her couch. A knock startled her from staring at the picture and she rushed towards the door. Joey ran her hands down the front of her purple patterned dress and straightened out of her hair. She took a deep breath and then flung the door open, and there he was. Pacey was standing there and the smile on his face melted her insides. All feelings of regret were washed away from his one look.   


“Well, aren’t you going to invite me in? Or do you plan to stare at me all night?” Pacey teased, the smirk she loved gracing his handsome face.   
|

“Well I do plan to stare at you,” she smirked and he smiled wide. “But I guess I can do that from inside.”   


“Good answer,” Pacey stepped forward and scooped her up into his arms. She shrieked and wrapped her arms around his shoulders as he spun her around. He stepped inside, Joey still in his arms, and kicked the door shut with his foot. “Hi Jo,” he whispered in her ear and goosebumps filled her entire body.   


“Hi Pace,” she buried her face in his neck and then pressed a kiss there. He hugged her tight to him and then placed her feet back on the ground. He kept a hand on her waist and she grabbed onto his free hand. “Welcome to New York!”   


“It’s good to be here,” he nuzzled his face in her hair and breathed her in. “God, I missed you.”   


“I missed you too,” she spun around and wrapped her arms around his waist.   


Pacey licked his lips and his eyes drifted towards her lips. He lifted his hands to cup her cheeks in his hands, rubbing circles around her cheeks with his thumbs and leaned forward to press his lips against hers. Joey sighed at the feel of his lips against hers and tugged him closer to her. She opened her mouth to him and his tongue immediately plunged into her mouth. She moaned and his fingers dug into her hair. She clutched the back of his shirt and tilted her head to the side when his mouth moved to her neck.   


“Are you hungry?” Joey mumbled and clutched his arms as his mouth moved towards her jawline.   


“Not for food,” he mumbled against her cheek and she shivered. Joey tugged the front of his shirt and pulled him back towards the bedroom.   


“I was hoping you’d say that,” she whispered. “I’m so happy you’re here.”   


“Me too baby,” he closed the door to her bedroom behind them and brushed her nose with his own. “Me too.”   


“Love me,” Joey whispered and that’s exactly what he did.   


  


  


“Who needs to exercise when you can just do that all the time?” Pacey dropped next to her on the bed and panted. Joey brushed a piece of sweaty hair off her face and giggled.   


“I wasn’t sure we were going to make it to the bed,” she teased.   


“That’s because you barely gave me a second to take my pants off,” he smirked.   


“Oops,” she bit her lip and rolled over to face him. He rolled onto his side to face her and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “Did you have any trouble finding the apartment?”   


“Nope,” he shook his head. “The cab driver lacked a sense of urgency or I would’ve been here sooner.”   


“And the restaurant was okay with you leaving early?” Joey reached over and ran her hand up his arm.   


“Kathy all but kicked me out,” he rolled his eyes and shook his head. “She said everything was under control and they don’t need me. I feel very unappreciated.”   


“Oh my poor baby,” Joey scooted closer and brushed her fingers across his cheek. “Do you want me to kiss you all better?”   


“That would be nice,” he pouted his lips at her. She smiled and then brushed her lips against his. She pulled back and ran her fingers over his stubbly chin.   


“You promised you wouldn’t grow that thing back, mister.”   


“And I’m not, Potter. I just haven’t found the will power to shave,” he ran a hand over his chin and then pressed his lips to ear. “And I certainly didn’t hear you complaining before.”   


“You’re lucky that I love you,” she shivered. He pulled her closer by the waist and kissed her forehead. Joey was about to say something when her stomach grumbled and she grimaced.   


“I better feed you before hangry Potter makes her appearance,” Pacey teased.   


“I thought we could order pizza and watch a movie,” she suggested.   


“Sounds like a plan to me,” he agreed. The two shared another kiss and then rolled their separate ways out of bed. Joey tossed on his sweatshirt and her panties, while he slipped on his boxers. “You know, one of us is going to give the pizza guy quite the greeting.”   


“Me without pants or you without a shirt?” Joey smirked.   


“Who knows?” He shrugged. “Maybe me shirtless will be all the tip he needs.”   


“You’re still so cute when you’re delusional,” she rolled her eyes and walked into the kitchen to grab the menu. “The usual?”   


“The usual,” he nodded and dropped onto her couch. He looked around her living room while he waited for her to finish the order.   


“Forty-five minutes,” Joey said.   


“Do you not keep any blankets in this room?” Pacey asked.   


“Nope,” she shook her head. “I usually just bring my comforter in here if I’m cold.”   


“Well that’s not very practical.”   


“Are you cold?” Joey asked.   


“Maybe,” he shrugged. “It’s also very difficult to cuddle without a nice warm blanket.”   


“They are in the closet in my room,” she nodded her head in the direction of the bedroom. He raised an eyebrow and she shot him a pointed look. “Get going, mister.”   


“So much for being the guest,” he mumbled as he heaved himself off the couch. She laughed as she heard him grumble under his breath.   


Pacey walked in the direction of her bedroom and looked around the room. There was a tiny bookshelf and it was filled with books. There were candles all around the room and her pin board of pictures that she had in college. Her room was obsessively clean and it made him smirk. Everything was exactly where it was supposed to be and he was sure her closet looked exactly the same. He tugged open the door and looked around for the blankets. He spotted them on the top shelf and was about to reach for them when his eyes landed on a dress. A dress that stopped him right in his tracks.   


He touched the soft yellow material and felt his stomach twist. Pacey remembered when he had first seen her in that dress. She had taken his breath away, like always. She looked absolutely gorgeous and he was mesmerized by her effortless beauty. By the end of the night, his breath had been taken from him but for a completely different set of reasons. He could see the remorse in her eyes but all he felt was anger and heartbreak. He didn’t want to hear any of her apologizes or excuses. Nothing she said could take it back. No apology could make him feel better.   


“Pace?” Joey called out. She furrowed her eyebrows at his lack of response and got up to see what was taking him so long. She walked into the room and found him staring in front of the closet, frozen in his spot. “Sweetheart?”   


“I-,” he mumbled and she stepped closer. She saw his hand resting on the yellow dress and her eyes shot to his face. He was staring at the material and his eyes weren’t moving.   


“Pace,” she rested a hand on his arm. He flinched and seemed to snap back to reality, his eyes quickly looking over at her.   


“Sorry,” he shook his head. He grabbed a blanket and quickly closed the closet door. “I, uh, got distracted.”   


“Let’s talk,” she tugged on his arm but he didn’t move.   


“That’s okay,” he insisted. “It was a long time ago.”   


“But we never talked about it,” Joey pulled him towards the bed with her.   


“I think any conversation back then would’ve ended terribly. One or both of us would’ve ended up in tears,” Pacey dropped onto the bed with her. He placed the blanket on the bed next to him and then wrung his hands together, leaning his elbows onto his thighs. Joey watched him and frowned, wishing he would take her hand. “I probably don’t even want to know the answer but I’ve always wondered something about that night.”   


“Wondered what?”   


“Did you go straight to his house that night?” Pacey asked. He saw her look down and nod. “So, you two slept together that same night?”   


“No!” Joey quickly looked at him and shook her head. “God, Pace. No. I know what I did was awful but I’m not that awful.”   


“I never said you were,” he said and looked down at his hands. “I went home that night and got so drunk I couldn’t even see straight. I’m pretty sure I was hungover for like two days, that’s how much I drank. I even considered burning my suit because I didn’t want to be reminded. I tossed the corsage in the parking lot of my apartment building.”   


“I almost called you that night,” Joey admitted. She felt her heartbreak as she listened to him talk about that night. She should’ve called, she should’ve done something. “After I got home, I considered calling you to make sure you were okay. Then I realized I was the last person you wanted to hear from.”   


“It’s probably for the best you didn’t call,” he nodded.   


“I sat and tried to write you a letter so many times but all the words seemed awful. I tried to explain it all to you so many times.”   


“Explain what to me?” Pacey looked at her. “You were pretty clear.”   


“Pace,” she took one of his hands and laced their fingers together. “I know what I said. I know what I led you to believe but it wasn’t true. Of course I still felt it between the two of us, I felt it way too much and that’s what scared me. I was so scared of what it all meant.”   


“I was scared too.”   


“You were so sure of us. You were so sure of our future and that terrified me. I couldn’t handle it if everything fell apart between us again. We had worked so hard to get back to the point where we were. The two of us were finally in a great place. I had finally gotten my best friend back after everything we went through senior year,” she said. Joey saw him swallow and close his eyes, so she squeezed his hand tightly. “I have never needed someone the way I need you, Pace. I have never loved someone the way I love you. We were so young and I was so afraid of what would happen if we fell apart. It scared me how much I could picture our future together and I couldn’t handle losing that again.”   


“I thought you loved him more. I thought you were really choosing him over me. I couldn’t understand what he had that I didn’t or what he could give you that I couldn’t,” Pacey said. She had to swallow back the tears at the rawness and honesty in his words. She could hear that insecure twenty year old that begged her to let him love her. That perfect boy who had begged her to give him another chance to prove himself.   


“It was never about Eddie,” she said. She saw him flinch at his name so she squeezed his hand again. “He had an expiration date. That relationship had an expiration date. I knew he was leaving again and somewhere in my messed up mind, that made the relationship so appealing. I could hide from my real feelings and run to something safe because I knew I wouldn’t get hurt. I knew that it wouldn’t break me when he left. He had already done it twice before and I knew this time wouldn’t be different.”   


“I love you, Potter, but that’s some pretty insane logic.”   


“Pace, was I ever good at feelings or relationships?” Joey shot him a look and he chuckled softly. “I never wanted to hurt you, sweetheart. You are the one person in my whole world that I can’t stand hurting. Your face from that night haunted me for so long. I’m so sorry that I ran from you and wasted the last five years because I was so scared.”   


“Hey,” he reached over and cupped her face with his hands. He used the pads of his thumbs to brush away her tears. “Don’t cry, Jo. You know I hate it when you cry.”   


“I didn’t think you would ever forgive me,” she whispered. “I wouldn’t have blamed you for not forgiving me.”   


“Jo,” he shot her a look. “After the crap I pulled senior year, I’m lucky you forgave me and even got that second chance. I think you and I have both hurt each other pretty horribly in the past but we have also learned from it. It’s made us the people we are today. But you know what I think?”   


“What’s that?” Joey sniffled and scooted closer to him. He traced her cheekbones with his thumbs and smiled softly.   


“That despite all the pain we’ve put each other through, we’ve given each other some of the most incredible love in the world. One thing that’s always gotten me through some of my toughest times is knowing that you love me. Your love has proved to me that I am capable of great things,” Pacey said. “Your love has gotten me through my darkest of times and made my great times even better.”   


“Really?” Joey whispered, her eyes full of tears and heart full of love.   


“Really, Jo. All the success and happiness in the world means nothing compared to what you mean to me,” Pacey said.   


“I swear just when I think you can’t get any more perfect, you say something like that.”   


“I’m far from perfect,” he shook his head but she grabbed his face in her hands and looked deep into his eyes.   


“You’re perfect for me. You’ve always been perfect for me and you always will be,” Joey insisted and then pressed her forehead against his. “I love you.”   


“I love you too,” he kissed her nose and then pulled her into his arms. Joey buried her face in his neck and held him close, thankful to close the chapter on that horrible time in their lives. “Besides, Lindley told me how your relationship drama was aired out in front of an audience. I’d say karma was served.”   


“Funny,” she deadpanned and pulled back to glare at him. He laughed and ran his fingers through her hair. “If it makes you feel any better, Audrey hated him. She used to glare at him whenever he was in the room.”   


“Audrey also slept with a giant fuzzy pink pillow,” he shot her a look. “She had interesting taste.”   


“She dated you, Pace.” She smirked.   


“Well we all have to get at least one thing right in life,” he smirked.   


“You know,” she said. “Speaking of Audrey.”   


“Uh oh,” he raised an eyebrow. “I never know how that sentence is going to end.”   


“I talked to her yesterday. She’s back in California. She broke up with that boyfriend.”   


“You mean, the anti-Pacey?” He glared at her.   


“Yup,” she nodded with a smile. “That’s the one.”   


“Poor her,” he mumbled.   


“I told her.”   


“Told her what?”   


“I told her about us, Pace. I told her that we are back together,” she said.   


“Oh?” Pacey widened his eyes in surprise. He hadn’t even thought about telling Audrey, in all honesty. “What did she say?”   


“Well after lecturing me for holding out on details about the reunion,” Joey rolled her eyes and he laughed. “She said no duh. She could’ve told us that we would get back together one day. She was the one that pointed out all those years ago that you weren’t over me and that it was about time we stopped ignoring our feelings.”   


“Oh lord,” he mumbled.   


“And then she said to tell you that if you hurt me, she will find you and make you sorry.” Joey laughed.   


“I have no doubts about that,” he rolled his eyes.   


“And she’ll be in New York in a week and wants to see us,” Joey said.   


“Audrey in New York?” Pacey playfully winced. “Yikes.”   


“Be nice,” she swatted his arm. “She’s trying to convince Dawson to come with her.”   


“Convince Dawson?” Pacey raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t know those two were close.”   


“They’ve been hanging out since she moved back to California. They both like having a friend there and Dawson’s all about friendship since losing Jen,” Joey explained.   


“I give them a month before they are calling to tell us they hooked up,” he smirked.   


“I give it three weeks,” she retorted.   


“Are you wagering with me, Potter?” Pacey raised an eyebrow.   


“I think I am,” she kinked an eyebrow. “And when I win, you have to cook me dinner every night we are together for a month.”   


“And when I win,” he tweaked her nose. “You have to do my laundry whenever we’re together and you know how much I hate doing laundry.”   


“You’re on,” she nodded.   


“Shake on it?” Pacey held out his hand. Joey giggled and shook his hand. Pacey tugged her into his arms and the two tumbled back onto the bed, sealing their bet with hot kisses.   


  


  


“When you told me that you were working from home today, I assumed that meant we could sleep past ten. Not have my ass rushed out the door before nine,” Pacey grumbled. She turned her head and saw him rubbing his eyes.   


“I completely forgot to grab one of the manuscripts that I need to edit by Wednesday,” Joey squeezed his arm apologetically. “I promise to get you a coffee on the way back to the apartment.”   


“I could’ve totally just stayed asleep while you ran to the office,” he mumbled.   


“You’re so grumpy this morning,” she narrowed her eyes at him. “Need I remind you that I got the same four hours of sleep that you did?”   


“No,” he sighed. Joey reached over to take his hand in her own and laced their fingers together.   


“I wanted to take you to my favorite café for breakfast this morning after stopping at the office,” she explained. “Then I was going to bring you back home and let you take a nap while I worked for a little while so you’d be less grumpy when you make dinner tonight.”   


“Oh, I’m making dinner tonight?” Pacey raised an eyebrow at her. “Do I have a say in this?”   


“Sure,” she shrugged. “You can say whatever you’d like, Pace but it’s not going to change my mind.”   


“And what’s in it for me?”   


“Besides delicious food?” Joey retorted and he rolled his eyes. “The satisfaction of knowing how happy you made your girlfriend and that she will be in a great mood.”   


“Hmm,” Pacey tugged her into his side and nuzzled her hair. “I guess that’s good enough for me.”   


“I thought so,” she pressed a kiss to his shoulder and then tugged him towards the doors of her office. He stopped in his tracks, which resulted in her stumbling back a few steps. “What the heck, Pacey?”   


“Should I wait down here?” He suddenly felt anxious.   


“Why?” Joey furrowed her brows.   


“I don’t want to step on any toes,” he said and her eyes softened as the realization hit her.   


“Christopher won’t be here,” Joey ran her finger across his cheek. “He only comes in when he has a meeting and he’s not due for another meeting for a couple of weeks.”   


“But everyone here loves him,” Pacey was still skeptical.   


“No one is going to look at you horribly, Pace. I promise,” Joey squeezed his hand. She tugged on it gently and he followed after her this time. “Although, Hannah may stare. Don’t take it personally. I think she’s dying to meet you.”   


“I’m used to people staring,” he bumped her hip and she rolled her eyes.   


“We really have to work on your modesty.”   


“It’s all part of the charm, baby.”   


“If you say so,” she stepped into the elevator with him and then pressed the number for her floor. He tugged her into his arms and pressed his lips to her neck, causing a moan to slip from her lips.   


“What do you say, Potter? Ever wanted to do it in an elevator?” Pacey mumbled against her warm skin.   


“I’m on the fourth floor,” she dropped her head back onto his shoulder as his lips continued to move across her neck. “Control your hormones.”   


“I’m not the one moaning,” he nibbled on her earlobe and she bit her lip. Joey pressed her backside into his crotch and heard his intake of breath. She turned to face him and kinked an eyebrow.   


“You were saying?” Joey ran her finger across his jawline.   


“Well played, Potter. Well played,” he kissed her cheek and loosened his grip on her hips. The two had a minute before the elevator doors opened and the two stepped out of the elevator. Pacey refrained from taking her hand, wanting to keep things professional at her job. “So this is the place where you are putting that fancy Ivy League degree to use?”   


“This is it,” Joey nodded. “I have my own desk and everything.”   


“So fancy,” he teased and she giggled. “If there isn’t a self-portrait of me on that desk, I’m going to be incredibly offended.”   


“You should probably prepare yourself then,” she peeked her tongue out from behind her teeth.   


“And to think I just had that beautiful portrait of you put up in my office,” he clicked his tongue and she rolled her eyes.   


“I bet I have more pictures on my desk than you have in your entire office.”   


“I have pictures in my office!” Pacey retorted.   


“Pictures that aren’t of sailboats,” she shot him a pointed look.   


“I think I liked it better when you used to call me a cretin.”   


“When you liked to tell everyone I had no boobs or no ass?” Joey stepped up to her desk and looked at him.   


“I am very happy to have been proven wrong,” his voice dropped to a husky whisper and she had to remind herself they were at her office.   


“Pervert,” she mumbled.   


“Prude,” he retorted. The two shared a look and then laughed. Twenty-five years old and it was like some things never changed between them.   


“Joey!” Hannah bounced over towards the couple. “Hi! I didn’t think you’d be in today.”   


“I just had to pick up a manuscript that I need to finish reading by Wednesday,” Joey explained. She noticed that Hannah was trying to discreetly look at Pacey, and from the small smirk on his face, she wasn’t discreet at all. “Hannah, this is Pacey. Pace, this is Hannah.”   


“It’s very nice to meet you,” Pacey held out a hand to the perky blonde. The blonde blushed and reached out to shake his hand. She seemed almost awestruck and Joey rolled her eyes.   


“Your eyes are so blue,” Hannah mumbled, almost in a trance like state. Then her eyes widened when she realized what she said and quickly pulled her hand away. “Oh! I can’t believe I just said that out loud.”   


“Well thank you,” Pacey said. He flashed her his most charming smile and Joey shook her head in amusement. “I’d like to think they look like the ocean.”   


“They do!” Hannah nodded in agreement. “How long are you in town for?”   


“Just until Wednesday,” Pacey said. “I have to get back to work by Thursday.”   


“What do you do?” Hannah asked.   


“I own my own restaurant,” he said.   


“Woah,” the blonde’s eyes widened. “So, can you like cook?”   


“I can,” he nodded. He and Joey shared an amused smile. “I’ve been a chef for about six or so years now.”   


“Impressive,” Hannah nodded. She noticed that Joey had grabbed what she needed and looked ready to go. “I should probably let you go before I start rambling. As Joey can tell you, once I get talking, I can go for hours.”   


“It was very nice to meet you, Hannah.” Pacey smiled kindly at her and her face flushed again.   


“It was nice to meet you too,” Hannah looked at him once more and then rushed away.   


“You weren’t kidding about that Audrey and Andie comparison,” he smirked when they were alone. “I feel like I just met their child.”   


“She wasn’t kidding about the talking thing either,” Joey said. “I once got stuck at the office with her for two extra hours because she wanted to tell me about her new boyfriend. They broke up three days later.”   


“Yikes,” Pacey winced and followed her towards the door. Joey introduced him to a few more coworkers and he, of course, charmed them almost instantly. By the time they exited the office, Joey was certain more than half of the females on staff wanted to marry him and a few of the guys wanted to be his best friend. He noticed her looking at him funny and raised an eyebrow.   


“What?”   


“I just love you,” she smiled. Pacey smiled and leaned over to kiss her.   


“I love you too, Jo.”   


  


  


“I’ve been meaning to ask you this all day but keep forgetting,” Pacey pulled her closer in bed that night. Joey felt their bare skin press together and relished the feel. She felt boneless and completely sated after a glorious round of lovemaking.   


“What’s that?”   


“Did you get married and not tell me, Potter?” Pacey asked and she looked at him like he was insane.   


“What?”   


“I noticed this ring on your finger and kept forgetting to ask,” he lifted her left hand and traced his thumb across the heart ring.   


“You don’t recognize it?” Joey raised an eyebrow.   


“Huh?” He furrowed his brows and lifted her hand to look at it closely. She watched his features and then saw the look of realization on his face. “But-,”   


“You thought I threw it away after we broke up?” She asked, her voice soft.   


“I wouldn’t have blamed you.”   


“I never threw anything away,” Joey promised. “I’ve kept everything.”   


“Everything?”   


“Everything,” she nodded and then started to trace circles around his heart. “I have a box of everything that’s important in our relationship.”   


“Like what?” Pacey asked.   


“Like the ticket from the movie we saw on our first date,” she smiled.   


“It was an action movie, wasn’t it?”   


“Yup,” Joey nodded. “Although, I don’t think I could tell you what happened.”   


“Me neither,” he smirked and then pressed a kiss to her lips.   


“I have the razor from that night in Kmart,” she said.   


“You kept the razor?” Pacey widened his eyes in surprise.   


“You left the bag in my room after you left for work that morning and I knew I would want to keep the razor from that night,” she explained. His eyes softened and his heart filled with love for the woman in his arms. “It’s totally rotten now.”   


“I’d imagine so,” he laughed. He lifted her hand again and twirled the ring around her finger.   


“It felt right to put the ring back on,” she whispered. He smiled and pressed a few soft kisses on the ring and then one to her pulse point.   


“I can get you a new one,” Pacey said. His eyes started to get heavy and she knew the exhaustion from the day had finally hit him. She ran her fingers through his hair, to lull him to sleep. She could see it was doing exactly that.   


“No way!” Joey shook her head. “I love this ring.”   


“Well,” he let out a huge yawn and Joey knew he was seconds away from sleep. “One day I’ll replace it with a wedding ring, Potter.”   


Joey felt her heat skip a beat and then watched as his eyes fluttered closed. He mumbled that he loved her as his breathing evened out. She whispered the words back and saw him smile in his sleep. Joey continued to run her fingers up and down his arm as she watched him sleep. She knew that his comment had been a sleepy omission but she knew that he meant it. Joey knew in her heart that Pacey had every intention of asking her to marry him one day. She knew that this was it for him and five years ago, that would have sent her running while he slept.   


But now, now it filled her with warmth. Now Joey couldn’t wait for the day that Pacey asked her to be his wife. She couldn’t wait to be his wife and for him to be her husband. Of course, the fear of things falling apart was still there but it wasn’t strong enough to scare her. It didn’t cripple her like it used to. Joey trusted Pacey’s love for her to always be there and to never leave her again. She trusted that their love could overcome anything. All the ups and downs they had to endure over the years and here they were. Joey was wrapped up in his arms and felt the safest she ever had. She could say with completely certainty that there was no other guy in the world that she would ever love the way she loved Pacey. No person would ever complete her the way he did. No person would ever make her happy the way he did every single day.   


Joey was suddenly overcome with an intense feeling of love and completeness as she watched her boyfriend sleep soundly next to her. She finally understand. All the years the word had been thrown around like it was some brand. The word had been tossed in her direction as a way of owning her. But looking at Pacey, and thinking of all they had to endure, she finally understand. Time and distance, relationships and heartbreak, anger and resentment, joy and tears. She finally realized that nothing in the world could ever pull her truly apart from Pacey. That every road would always lead her back to his arms and she finally realized why that was.   


“You’re my soulmate,” Joey whispered to his sleeping form. She pressed a kiss to his forehead and he tugged her closer in his sleep. As she let sleep overcome her and relished the feel of his strong arms around her, Joey fell asleep with a smile. Pacey Witter was her soulmate.   



	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter has some sexually explicit material in it.

Joey stepped into the Ice House and was startled by the crowd of people. There was a line waiting to be put on a list for seating and people sitting around, waiting for their tables. The bar was packed with people and the restaurant was loud with chatter. The hostess, Melissa, waved at Joey as she passed by. Joey felt a wave of sympathy for the young female, seeing the overwhelmed look on her face. She made her way through the restaurant and kept her eyes opened for Pacey. She looked towards the bar and saw that Sean was handling that with ease. He was a clear natural and had a charming smile as he handled each guest. The wait staff was moving around and handling the tables as quickly as they could. But still, no Pacey.   


Joey peeked into his office and saw that it was empty. She frowned and then stepped back out to the main area. She thought that he might be in the kitchen but knew that she couldn’t go in there during business hours. Pacey was very adamant that staff were the only ones allowed back there as a safety precaution. She looked through one of the little windows and spotted him. He was discussing something with Hank and nodding at the older man. The door swung open and she shouted his name before the door closed again. Pacey’s head turned in the direction of the door, and his eyes lit up at the sight of her. He said something to Hank and then rushed out towards Joey.   


“Jo!” Pacey scooped her up in his arms and swung her around. It had been two days since he left New York and he missed her so much.   


“Hi honey,” Joey hugged him close and then smiled up at him when he placed her back on the ground.   


“I thought you weren’t going to get in until later tonight?” Pacey rested his hands on her hips and smiled down at her.   


“I finished what I needed to early today and didn’t want to sit around and wait until tonight,” she explained. “I was going to hang out at the B&B until you closed up but I got impatient. I didn’t expect you to be so busy.”   


“Welcome to Friday night’s at the Ice House,” he smirked. “This is actually calm for us.”   


“This is calm?” Joey gaped as she looked back out at the main area. It was jam packed and the line seemed to be getting longer.   


“Don’t tell me you have forgotten the crazy calm from your serving wench days,” he teased.   


“I try to block those days out,” she mumbled and he laughed. “Do you need any help?”   


“You want to waitress?” Pacey widened his eyes in surprise. “I thought those days were long gone, Potter?”   


“I wouldn’t do it for just anyone,” she tugged on his earlobe and smiled.   


“Well lucky for you,” he kissed her nose. “We are fully staffed tonight but I appreciate the offer.”   


“Well then I will just find something to do to entertain myself until you are done.”   


“Here,” Pacey pulled his keys out of his pocket and handed them to her. “Why don’t you hang out at my apartment until I can get away? Make yourself at home.”   


“You’re leaving me alone with all your valuables?” Joey playfully raised an eyebrow. “You must be very serious about me.”   


“Just don’t touch the kitchen, Potter.” He tweaked her nose and she flicked his shoulder.   


“For that,” she playfully glared at him. “I may just have to attempt to bake a cake.”   


“You wouldn’t dare,” Pacey narrowed his eyes at her. Joey twirled a piece of her hair around her finger and kinked an eyebrow at him.   


“Maybe I would, maybe I wouldn’t.”   


“Hussy,” he mumbled. Joey bit her lower lip and twirled the keys around her finger. She leaned in towards his ear and whispered seductively.   


“I’ll see you at home,” she pressed a kiss right below his ear and then turned to walk away. She heard his sharp intake of breath and looked over her shoulder to see him staring at her, his chest heaving with heavy breaths. She winked at him once and saw the desire behind those beautiful blue eyes. God, she loved him so much.   


  


  


Pacey walked into his apartment later that night and locked the door behind him. He tossed his wallet, keys, and phone on the side table before walking in search of Joey. It was an incredible feeling to come home after a long day and know that she was waiting for him. This was all he wanted since they fell in love junior year. She was all he wanted. No other woman had ever made him feel even an ounce of what he feels for Joey. Knowing that she loved him back and wanted to be with him just as much, well that’s more than he could ever ask for. Pacey felt like he was finally living the life he dreamed of and he was never going to let anything get in the way of it again. He was determined to make the two of them last.   


A soft smile graced his face when he finally found her. She was curled up on his couch, a book in her hands, music playing softly on the radio, and a peaceful look of content on her face. Her chest rose and fell with every breath she took. Her hair was falling in her face and her nose scrunched up. Her knees were pulled up to her stomach and she was clutching the book to her chest. He gently took the book from her hands and placed it on the coffee table. Pacey brushed a piece of hair off Joey’s face and heard her soft sigh, which caused him to smile. He sat on the coffee table in front of her and just watched her sleep.   


He remembered the first time he ever watched her sleep. He had been so young and so confused. He was feeling all these new things for a girl that he was certain would never return them. Pacey remembered watching the way the glow from the fire hit her face just perfectly. All he could think back then was how breathtaking she was. The butterflies were a reminder constantly of what he was capable of feeling. Being with Joey and loving Joey made him feel like he was a part of something better, something greater. He would endure every ounce of pain and heartbreak for just one of her lopsided smiles or sarcastic remarks. There was nothing in the world that ever made him feel so, so alive.   


“Are you watching me sleep, Witter?” Joey’s scratchy voice startled him from his thoughts. Blue eyes met brown eyes and he smiled. She had a knowing smile on her face and he couldn’t resist the urge to brush his finger across her cheek.   


“Busted,” he shrugged.   


“How long have you been home?” Joey slowly sat up and yawned. Pacey watched as she stretched her arms over her head and realized that she was wearing one of his sweatshirts.   


“Like five minutes,” he said and then raised an eyebrow. “Are you determined to steal all of my clothes?”   


“I don’t ever remember you minding me in your clothes,” she retorted.   


“I prefer you without any clothes but it’s a close second,” he nonchalantly shrugged and her face flushed.   


“Perv,” she rolled her eyes.   


“Prude,” he pinched her knee. He then heard the music change to a slow song and looked at the beautiful brunette in front of him. Slowly standing up, Pacey held out his hand to her. “Dance with me?”   


“Pace,” she bit her lip and smiled.   


“Come on, Potter. Let’s put those dance lessons to good use,” Pacey wiggled his fingers at her and she placed her hand in his. He tugged her up off the couch and then into open space in his living room. Pacey instantly pulled her close and her one hand rested on his shoulder, as his moved to wrap around her waist. They slowly started to sway to the music and his forehead rested against hers.   


“Hmm,” she nuzzled her face in his cheek. “I remember the first time we ever danced together. You could’ve fit an entire person in between us.”   


“Our dance teacher certainly liked to remind us of that,” he laughed.   


“Rib cages!” Joey mimicked their teacher’s voice and giggled. Pacey laughed because he could remember all the times they got scolded for how they danced.   


“I couldn’t tell if she liked us or hated us,” he said. He liked to believe she secretly liked the two of them. He always felt like she was rooting for them to get together.   


“I wonder if she still runs that studio,” she said. She loved the feel of his body pressed against hers and the way his fingers brushed the length of her spine. It filled her with a pleasant warmth.   


“She does,” he nodded. He saw Joey raise an eyebrow in question so he elaborated. “I walked by there the other day and saw her getting ready for a class. I quickly rushed away before she could see me.”   


“Still scared of her?” Joey teased.   


“I most certainly am not,” he pretended to be offended. She was about to respond when he unexpectedly dipped her backwards. Joey shrieked and clutched his biceps. He leaned down to kiss her quickly and then pulled her back up.   


“Smooth,” she giggled. It felt like when he kissed her at Gail’s wedding. The feeling of trusting that he wouldn’t drop her and that she would always be safe in his arms. The moment his lips had touched hers at the wedding, she knew. She knew that the spark was still there and as strong as ever.   


“I try,” Pacey smirked. He spun her out and then back into his arms. She felt like she was floating on air and loved being in love. What used to terrify her about her feelings for Pacey, were now her favorite thing in the world.   


“I think our dance teacher would be very proud of us right now.”   


“For finally pressing our rib cages together or for giving into the obvious sexual tension between us?” Pacey lifted an eyebrow and she laughed.   


“ _Kiss_ should start their reunion tour any day now.” The two of them laughed and he tugged her even closer, if that was possible.   


“I wanted to kiss you that night,” Pacey admitted. Joey raised her eyebrows in surprise and saw the look of complete sincerity on his handsome face. “There was a moment when the two of us were dancing and our eyes locked. It felt like everything around us had disappeared and we were all that mattered. I wanted to lean in and kiss you so badly.”   


“I probably would’ve stomped on your foot,” Joey sighed. She hated how long it took for to accept that her feelings for Pacey were real. She wished she hadn’t been so afraid of what they meant all those years ago. She wished they hadn’t lost that time because of the denial.   


“I knew the right moment would present itself eventually,” Pacey tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear. “And then it did, and you punched me.”   


“I shoved you!” Joey protested.   


“Quite aggressively,” Pacey pressed a kiss to her nose. Her eyes closed at the tender gesture and she savored the feel of being in his arms. It was her favorite place to be and the place where she felt the safest.   


“I’m sorry it took me so long, Pace. I’m sorry I denied my feelings for so long and frustrated the hell out of you,” Joey sighed and lowered her eyes. Pacey placed a gentle finger underneath her chin and slowly lifted it so their eyes could meet.   


“I’m not,” Pacey promised and smiled softly when he saw the surprised look instantly fill her beautiful face. “You weren’t ready for us and it would have ruined our story if we rushed into something. We were ready when we were ready. There was no rush.”   


“Why are you always so perfect?” Joey felt her eyes well with tears at his sincere words. She sent up a prayer of thanks for what felt like the millionth time that she was blessed with Pacey. She was so grateful and so thankful that he was all hers. What had she ever done to deserve his love?   


“I’m far from perfect,” Pacey shook his head and a faint blush filled his cheeks.   


“Well you’re perfect for me,” Joey wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pressed her forehead to his. His arms slowly circled her waist and he tugged her so that there was no space left between the two of them. So that they could feel the other’s heartbeat against their chest.   


“I love you,” Pacey brushed his nose down the length of hers. “God Jo, I love you so much.”   


“I love you Pacey Witter,” Joey pressed her lips against his gently and buried her fingers into his hair. She felt his lips start to move against hers and felt the passion quickly grow between the two of them.   


“I have too many clothes on,” his voice was breathless as he moved to kiss underneath her ear.   


“I agree,” she murmured. She moved her fingers from his hair to the first button on his shirt. “Let me help you with that, sweetheart.”   


Pacey swallowed and his eyes darkened with desire as she slowly unbuttoned the buttons on his shirt. She pressed a kiss to his chest after each button came undone and by the time she was finished, his chest was heaving with anticipation. Her fingers brushed up his chest and to his shoulders, pushing the material off his shoulders and letting the shirt fall to the floor. Her lips moved to press small kisses across his collarbone and her soft fingers brushed down his arms, leaving a trail of goosebumps in their wake. Joey’s eyes locked with his as she tugged the undershirt out from his pants and up his body. Her lips pressed kisses in every inch of exposed skin and Pacey wasn’t sure how much longer he could handle this without exploding on the spot.   


He cupped the back of her head and pressed their lips together. Joey moaned when his tongue plunged into her mouth and she pressed herself into his erection, causing him to groan into her mouth. They both knew they wouldn’t make it to his bedroom and stumbled backwards towards the couch. The back of his legs hit the armrest but Joey held them up straight. Looking him square in the eyes, she lifted his sweatshirt off her body. His pants felt even tighter when he realized she wasn’t wearing anything underneath. Joey was standing there in just a small pair of lace panties and eyes full of lust. She unbuckled his belt and quickly slid his khakis down his legs, taking his shoes and socks off with them.   


The two stood there, chests heaving and breaths labored, just staring. It didn’t matter how many times they did this or how many times they would do this, they could never get enough. Pacey hooked his finger into the front of her lace panties and tugged her towards him. Their chests collided and they fell back onto the couch, a tangle of limbs and lips. He discarded of her panties as she made quick work of his boxers. Joey scooted up his legs and rested herself on his hips before slowly lowering herself onto his erection. He closed his eyes and groaned as he fully filled her.   


Joey leaned forward and rested her hands on his chest as she slowly started to move her hips against him. He cupped her breasts in his hands and she moaned as they filled his strong hands. Everything about the way their bodies moved together felt right. The two moved in perfect sync and the passion continued to grow between the two of them. As Joey started to ride him faster and with purpose, he lifted himself into a sitting position to take her breast into his mouth. She threw her head back and her fingers moved to bury themselves in his hair, holding him to her chest. While his mouth worshiped her one breast, his hand kneaded the other one. Then he switched and gave the other breast the same amount of love.   


Pacey could feel the way her body was tightening around him and heard the quickening of her breath. Their bodies glistened with sweat and their chests heaved against each other. He tore his mouth away from her breast and kissed a trail up to her mouth. His tongue plunged into her mouth and matched the movements of their bodies. She tightened her grip around his shoulders and held him so close to her body. His thumb lowered down her body and rubbed circles around her throbbing clit. She gasped and then bit down on his shoulder as her body moved closer to her release.   


“Come for me, Jo. Show me how good I make you feel,” he murmured into her ear and the sucked on that spot right behind her ear.   


“Oh Pacey!” She cried out as her orgasm hit her hard and she dug her nails into his back. She was certain there would be marks there in the morning but couldn’t bring herself to care, and the look on his face told her he didn’t really care either. He held her through her release and kissed his way down her shoulder and then across her chest and back up the other shoulder to her neck. Joey knew that he was close by the string moans as she moved her hips over his. She sucked on his neck and then tugged on his earlobe with her teeth. Her tongue licked around the shell of his ear and she whispered in his ear, “Let go, Pace. Come for me.”   


“Jo,” he moaned. His fingers dug into her hips as he guided her movements over him and he buried his face into her neck as he came deep inside of her.   


They slowly rocked against each other as their bodies came down from their high. Joey pressed soft kisses across his cheek and then his forehead and then his other cheek. Pacey’s fingers ran slowly up and down her back. Then their bodies went limp and he fell back on the couch, bringing her down with him. Not quite ready to lose that connection yet, he stayed inside her for just a few more minutes. She pressed soft kisses on his chest and then his neck as his arms tightened around her waist. The silence was comfortable and the two felt wonderfully sated in each other’s arms.   


“I love you so much, Jo.” Pacey brushed a piece of hair off her face and pressed a kiss to her forehead.   


“I love you so much sweetheart,” Joey nuzzled his cheek with her face.   


She lifted herself off of him and nuzzled herself into his side. He tugged the blanket from the back of the couch and covered the two of them with it. They snuggled together and their legs tangled together. Pacey’s arm came up to wrap around her shoulders and she hooked one of her fingers around one of his. He pressed a kiss to her forehead and she burrowed herself deep into his arms. With a sigh of complete content, sleep overtook the two of them and they were sure that there was no safer place then right here.   


  


  


“I am never, ever doing this again,” Pacey dropped his hands to his knees with a panted breath. Joey slowed down and looked over at him.   


“Oh come on, Pace. We only have two more miles,” Joey jogged in place and laughed when he lifted his head to glare at her.   


“Only two more miles?” He groaned. “That’s so far away.”   


“Think of the reward!” Joey encouraged.   


“What is the reward?” Pacey rubbed a stitch in his side and couldn’t think of any reward that would make this torture worth it.  


“A long, healthy life!”   


“I think a healthy sex life will satisfy that,” he protested. Joey placed her hands on her hips and tapped her foot impatiently at him. “How the hell did I even let you convince me to do this?”   


“I think you remember,” her eyes twinkled and he smirked. He certainly did remember. The feel of her lips wrapped around his morning erection was all the motivation he had needed to wake up. “Now come on, sweetheart! Only two more miles and then a nice rewarding shower will be waiting on you.”   


“When I can’t move later, I want you to know I will fully blame you for that.”   


“I can totally accept that,” she nodded. She kissed his sweaty cheek and then started to jog in place again. “Now, move it Witter!”   


“So bossy,” he grumbled. She kinked an eyebrow at him, slapped his ass, and then started to run in the direction of his apartment. Pacey, startled but pleased, ran after her.   


The two ran side by side for the remaining two miles. Joey looked over at her boyfriend and suppressed a giggle. He looked miserable and was drenched in sweat. She knew that he would never run with her again but was pleased he had this morning. He was the only boyfriend she had ever gotten to run with her and it felt like a weird milestone for them. Like she was letting him into a part of her life that was hers and hers alone. Running had always been her sanctuary and the time where she was alone with her thoughts. It was when she felt the most free. Having Pacey run alongside her, sometimes behind her, it was like she was showing him another side of her. The part of her that she didn’t let anyone else ever see.   


The two finally made it back to his apartment. He groaned when he they walked up the stairs and then let them inside. Joey walked to the kitchen to grab water for the both of them. Pacey dropped onto the floor right by the front door. The cool tile felt nice and he was certain he was never going to be able to move again. She walked back into the living room and giggled at the sight. His legs were stretched out in front of him. One hand was on his stomach and his other arm was draped across his face. His chest was heaving and he was a sweaty mess.   


“Here you go sweetheart,” Joey crouched down next to him and held out a bottle of water for him.   


“Just pour it into my mouth,” he said.   


“Pace,” she giggled. He opened his mouth wide and she rolled her eyes. Joey tipped the water bottle and poured some into his mouth. He closed his eyes and sighed appreciatively.   


“I don’t see the appeal in running and have no idea how you do this every day,” Pacey kept his eyes closed and rubbed his eyes.   


“It feels incredible,” Joey sat next to him. She took another sip of her water and used her other hand to rub his stomach.   


“Sleep feels incredible,” Pacey disagreed.   


“The first is always the worst,” she teased. “Tomorrow you will be a pro.”   


“Oh no,” he opened his eyes and shook his head. “There will be no tomorrow, Potter. You are on your own. I will kindly keep the bed warm while you torture yourself with gross exercise.”   


“I can make it worth your while,” she slipped her hand underneath his shirt but he just glared.   


“I am not falling for this again,” he shook his head and closed his eyes. “Hit me with the water.”   


“Okay,” Joey bit her lip and lifted the water bottle. She went to pour it in his mouth but got a different idea. She poured it on his face and he shot upright.   


“Jo!” Pacey gasped and glared at her.   


“Oops,” she playfully shrugged her shoulders and giggled. He went to grab for her but she jumped to her feet and ran from the room.   


“Come here, Potter.” Pacey scrambled to his feet and bolted after her. “It’s a small apartment, Jo. You can’t hide from me.”   


“Or can I?” Joey’s voice drifted from another room and he followed it. He heard her giggle and saw her running out of the kitchen. He quickly followed her and saw her run into the bathroom. She shut the door before he could stop her, and he jiggled the door handle.   


“Let me in, Potter.” He heard the shower turn on and dropped his head against the door.   


“Oops,” her voice teased. “My shirt slipped off.”   


“Potter,” he jiggled on the doorknob harder and heard her giggle.   


“Oh wow. My pants just slipped off, Pace.”   


“This is very unkind of you,” he groaned at the idea of her naked on the other side of the door.   


“Say you’ll go running with me again,” she taunted.   


“Jo,” he whined.   


“Say it and I’ll let you in,” her voice dropped to a seductive tone. “I’ll even let you in the shower with me.”   


“This is a cruel trick,” he banged his head against the door.   


“Tick tock,” she taunted. “The water is getting colder.”   


“Fine,” he relented. One day he would learn how to say no to her, but he had a feeling that it was not going to be any time soon. If he was being honest, he had a feeling that it would never happen. The door immediately opened and she smiled wide. True to her word, she was standing there naked and looking at him with so much lust that he almost dropped to his knees.   


“You’re so easy,” she tugged on the front of his shirt and pulled him into the bathroom with her. He kicked the door shut with his foot.   


“And you’re so going to pay for that,” he scooped her up in his arms and all but devoured her neck with hot kisses that made her weak in the knees.   


“Bring it on, Witter.” She moaned when his tongue trailed down her neck and she tightened her arms around him. She had no problem with what he had in mind for her, no problem at all.   


  


  


“Knock knock,” Joey peeked her head into Jack’s classroom. She saw her friend sitting at his desk, reading through a stack of papers on his desk.   


“Joey!” Jack sat up and smiled. He quickly got out of his chair and rushed over to hug her, hugging her tight to him. She hugged him back, just as tightly. She had missed him so much. “I didn’t know you were in town.”   


“I got in last night and went straight to Pacey’s,” she explained. Jack went back to sit at his desk and she sat in one of the desks in front of his. “Oh wow. I forgot how much I hate sitting in these desks.”   


“And to think we sat in these desk for more than half our life,” he teased and she laughed.   


“And now look at you,” she held her hands out and gestured around his classroom. “Educating the young minds.”   


“Well trying to,” he laughed.   


“How are you, Jack?” Joey asked, her voice softening. She did a quick sweep of his appearance and could see the dark circles under his eyes from exhaustion. He ran his fingers through his hair and shrugged.   


“I take it day by day,” Jack said. “I miss Jen. I miss her like crazy. Every time I look at Amy or she does something incredible, I want to share it with Jen. This wasn’t supposed to happen to her.”   


“No,” she shook her head in agreement. She felt that familiar ache in her chest that she always felt whenever she thought about Jen. “It wasn’t.”   


“I think what helps is knowing she’s not suffering anymore. She’s not living with the panic of what was going to happen and with the pain,” he said and then added. “Doug helps, a lot.”   


“I can see the look in your eyes,” Joey smiled softly. He raised an eyebrow and she bit her lip. “I know a Witter love trance when I see one.”   


“Crazy, huh?” Jack chuckled. “All the time the two of us were in this town. All those years I was worried about never finding love and he was right there. He was right in front of me the entire time.”   


“I’m not sure you would’ve made any progress with him back then,” Joey said. She knew it wouldn’t have mattered if Jack liked him back in high school. Doug would’ve never done anything about it or even acknowledged. One, because of the age gap. Two, because he refused to acknowledge his sexuality back then. “He was not ready to come out.”   


“What’s with this group and falling for those Witter’s?” Jack teased. She laughed because it was true. First, Andie and Pacey. Then, her and Pacey. Then, Dawson and Gretchen. Now, Jack and Doug. Even Jen had tried to make something work with a Witter.   


“I think it’s the eyes,” she giggled and then smirked. “I have to say though, I definitely got the best Witter.”   


“Keep dreaming sister,” Jack tossed a pen at her. She gasped and tossed it back at him. “A man in a uniform? Yes please.”   


“Agree to disagree?” Joey asked. She knew, without a doubt, that she had ended up with the best Witter.   


“I suppose,” he laughed. “So, what’s on your agenda for today?”   


“Keeping myself busy until Pace can get away from the restaurant.”   


“Well I have the perfect distraction,” he said and saw her raise her eyebrow in question. “You can spend the day with your favorite McPhee.”   


“Andie’s in town?” Joey teased.   


“I forgot how not funny you are,” he rolled his eyes and stood up. She stood up as well and smiled when he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Let’s go find something to do in this town.”   


“Ah,” she laughed. “Sounds just like high school.”   


“Minus the love triangles,” he bumped her hip and she shoved his side.   


“Watch it,” she shot him a look.   


“It’s good to have you here, Jo.” Jack pressed a kiss to the top of her head and she smiled at him. “I really missed you.”   


“I missed you, too.”   


  


  


“Didn’t Pacey live here with Gretchen in high school?” Jack took a sip of his coffee and nodded at the beach house. They saw a For Sale sign on the front lawn and it looked abandoned. The front lawn clearly needed to be mowed and a shingle looked like it was falling off the side of the house.   


“He did,” Joey nodded. She looked at her friend and shrugged. “Do you want to take a look inside?”   


“Why not?” Jack shrugged. “It’s been a while since I’ve been here.”   


“Let’s go,” she walked towards the house.   


Joey and Jack walked towards the beach house and up the porch. The door was unlocked and they stepped inside. The floors creaked underneath them and the house was completely empty. The paint was faded and it definitely needed an upgrade. Jack walked towards the kitchen, while Joey headed towards the staircase. She ran her hand up the railing as she walked up the stairs and her fingers were instantly covered in dust. It creaked with every step that she took and some of the steps were loose. Once her feet hit the top of the staircase, her head turned towards the master bedroom. She smiled at Gretchen’s old room and then looked at the bathroom right between the two rooms. Since the master bedroom had a bathroom, the one out here was Pacey’s.   


Joey turned her head in the direction of the second bedroom, Pacey’s old room. She pushed the door open and felt swarmed with memories. The walls were still the same blue that he had painted it, but completely faded. Joey let her head look around and could picture exactly what it had looked like almost seven years ago. She could picture the old bed, the oak dresser, the pictures on the wall, and the mess of clothes scattered around the floor that he refused to put in the laundry basket. Joey spent so many hours and days in this room. She could picture the two of them studying on the bed and then the hours they spent kissing on his bed. His room always felt more like home to her than her own home. By the end of their relationship, she had an entire wardrobe in his closet and dressers.   


She smiled softly and closed her eyes. That had felt like another life to her. Her high school years felt like a different world. She walked over towards the closet door and furrowed her brows, wondering if it was still there. Joey opened the door, felt her heart skip a beat, and ran a gentle finger over the letters. She bit her lip and forced back the unexpected tears. JP loves PW. She remembered when she drew that on his closet door. He had teased her for being so mushy and she quickly shut him up with a look. She had been overcome with love for her boyfriend and wanted him to always remember that. She always wanted him to be able to look at the letters and remember that she loved him. Joey was surprised that the owners of the house hadn’t painted over it but was glad they hadn’t. It was just another reminder of their forever love.   


“Ah,” Jack stepped into the room and smirked. “I should’ve known I’d find you in here.”   


“Busted,” she laughed. “It feels like a step back in time, this room and house.”   


“I always pictured the two of you building a life in a beach house,” he admitted.   


“I’m pretty sure Pace always envisioned us living on a boat,” she chuckled. She couldn’t lie. She, too, had pictured the two of them growing old in a beach house with a swing on the porch to watch the stars at night.   


“Well you’ve got your fancy New York apartment now,” he teased and she laughed.   


“It’s hardly fancy,” Joey insisted.   


“Regardless,” he shrugged. “You finally got out of this town and are living the life you always wanted.”   


“Yeah,” she nodded and then looked around the room again. As easily as she had been able to picture them growing old this house, she could just as easily picture them building a life in New York.   


Joey followed Jack down the stairs and kept looking around. All the memories of this house consumed her. The good and the bad. The happy and the sad. Joey had a lifetime full of memories in this house with Pacey. This house had been her second home, once upon a time. She followed Jack outside the house and then turned back to face it once more. A tingling in her heart made her stop and stare for another minute. She was overcome with a feeling she couldn’t explain. She had the sudden urge to find Pacey. She needed to see Pacey.   


  


  


“Jo? I’m home,” Pacey walked into the apartment that night. Joey looked up from the book she was reading and smiled at her boyfriend. He tossed his keys and wallet onto the side table before dropping onto the couch next to her.   


“Hi honey,” she caressed his cheek with her fingers and smiled when he leaned in to kiss her. He pressed two more kisses to her lips before pulling back and resting his back against the couch. “How was your day?”   


“Busy,” he said. He toed off his shoes and then stretched his legs out, resting them on the coffee table. “We had a new waitress start today and man is she going to be a handful.”   


“Oh?” Joey turned to face him, tossing her book onto the coffee table as she did. She pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on top of them as she looked at him.   


“After spending the first twenty minutes flirting with Sean, she then moved on to flirt with another one of our young waiters.”   


“I smell work place romance,” she laughed.   


“Sean’s girlfriend may have an issue with that,” he said.   


“What about the other guy?” Joey asked. She loved seeing Pacey in boss mode and listening to him talk about his job. She was so proud of the incredible man that he had grown into. She knew that his staff were very important to him and that he cared for each one of them.   


“Michael,” he said. “No one knows with him. Sometimes he seems interested, and other times dating seems like the last thing he wants. He keeps to himself and is pretty quiet.”   


“So the opposite of high school Pacey,” she teased. He narrowed his eyes at her in return.   


“I resent that,” he tweaked her nose. “Why would I need to put myself out there when I already had the most beautiful girl in the world?”   


“Smooth,” she blushed. The way he looked at her with complete sincerity made her insides warm and butterflies fill her stomach. Would she ever get tired of him looking at her like that? She was certain she wouldn’t.   


“Then I went over to spend some time with Amy and Grams. I brought lunch for the two of them and helped Grams with some cleaning,” he said. Grams had moved in with Jack and Amy since Jen’s passing. She wanted to be near Amy and to help Jack raise her.   


“How was Grams?” Joey asked.   


“Sad,” he sighed. Pacey tugged Joey’s legs into his lap and started to run his hands up and down the length of her thighs. She rested her cheek on the couch and watched his face.   


“I’m going to stop over there tomorrow for lunch with her,” Joey said. She was going to make a point of always checking in on Grams and helping her in any way that she could during this difficult time.   


“What about you?” Pacey asked. “How was your day, sweetheart?”   


“I spent it with Jack,” she said.   


“Of course you did,” he chuckled. He knew that Joey and Jack had started a new tradition since Jen’s passing. Every Wednesday night, after Pacey left New York to return to Capeside, Joey was going to call Jack. The two would talk on the phone for hours and it kept them connected.   


“Guess where we went?”   


“Where?”   


“The old beach house,” she said. Pacey stopped rubbing her legs and looked at her in surprise.   


“My old beach house?”   


“That’s the one,” she nodded. “Did you know it’s for sale?”   


“No,” he shook his head. “I haven’t been over there in at least a year. The last I saw, there was an old man living there.”   


“It was completely abandoned when we went there,” she said.   


“Does it look completely different?”   


“Not at all,” Joey shook her head. “He never painted over the writing in your closet.”   


“Oh yeah?” Pacey smiled and she smiled almost instantly.   


“It felt like a time capsule stepping in there,” she admitted. “It was like I could picture the house exactly the way you two had it back then.”   


“I miss that house,” he said. “It was a good house. It was the first place that ever felt like home to me. The first place where I ever felt like I belonged.”   


“It was a good house,” she agreed. Joey reached over and gently ran her fingers across his shoulder.   


“The only thing it lacked was a Bertha,” he smirked and she rolled her eyes.   


“We have got to get you over this obsession with big televisions,” she shook her head in amusement.   


“Never!” Pacey gasped and rested a hand on his chest. “I am offended that you still don’t give her the respect she deserves.”   


“It’s okay, sweetheart. We all have our issues,” she rubbed comforting circles over his shoulder.   


“Issues, huh?” He raised an eyebrow. He tugged on her legs and she shrieked as he pulled her closer. Her one arm wrapped around his shoulders and his arms wrapped around her waist, their foreheads pressed together. “I missed you today.”   


“You did, huh?” Joey ran her fingers through his hair and brushed his nose with her own. “Even after the torture I put you through this morning? Making you exercise and all.”   


“Even after all that,” he pressed a kiss to her cheek before nuzzling it with his face.   


“You must really like me then,” she twirled a piece of hair at the nape of his neck around her finger.   


“Maybe a little,” he nipped at her jaw.   


“Only a little?” Joey playfully pouted. He smirked and brushed his fingers under the hem of her shirt.   


“Okay, maybe a lot.”   


“Hmm,” she murmured. “I maybe like you a lot, too.”   


“You don’t say,” he chuckled.   


“Just kiss me,” she rolled her eyes and laughed. Pacey laughed and then pressed his lips to hers.   


Joey ran her fingers through his hair as their lips moved together in perfect sync, their tongues seeking immediate entrance. She was sure that she could spend every day kissing him, and never grow tired of it. It always felt like the first time. Her body came alive the moment his lips touched hers and as his fingers caressed her warm skin. He pressed a kiss to her nose, her forehead, her cheek, and then her jaw. Joey smiled and brushed her thumb across his cheek. She pulled him down to lay on the couch with her and snuggled into his warm embrace. She traced circles around his chest, while his fingers ran through her hair.   


As Joey felt his fingers run through her hair, a feeling overcame her. She couldn’t explain it and she couldn’t understand it but she felt it. She felt like big changes were coming not just for herself, but for Pacey as well. She wasn’t worried about their relationship, but she knew something was happening. Something was shifting around them and between them. She knew that whatever happened next, they could handle it together.   



	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is kind of a set up, filler chapter. It's helping to transition to the next part of their story. Thank you all so much for the incredible feedback and support! I love hearing what you guys think. Enjoy!

Over the next three months, Joey and Pacey found their rhythm as a couple. The distance between them was difficult but they made it work. Business at the Ice House was still booming and he found it difficult to leave the restaurant until really late at night. Manuscripts were finding their way to Joey’s desk quicker than she could read them some weeks. There were nights she fell asleep before she could even call her boyfriend, and mornings where he overslept and had to rush out the door without a call to his girlfriend. They kept their schedule for visits but sometimes work got in the way and last minute cancelations left them glum for days. The distance between them was starting to frustrate them and they knew they needed to figure out how to fix it, and soon.   


Joey curled up on the couch in her apartment and waited for her boyfriend to finish up his phone call in the bedroom. She tugged the blanket off the back of the couch, now keeping them in the living room because of Pacey, and wrapped it around her body. She was so tired, not feeling so great, and ready to fall asleep, but the two promised Dawson they would watch the season finale of _The Creek_ tonight. She wanted to curl up in her boyfriend’s arms, let him soothe her to sleep, and then sleep the entire night away. She heard his footsteps coming down the hallway from her bedroom and it filled her body with warmth. She loved being in the same place as him and was so glad that he was going to be here for the entire week, taking a much needed vacation.   


“Do you want anything to drink?” Pacey ran his hand over the back of her head and pressed a kiss to her temple.   


“I wouldn’t complain if you wanted to make your hot chocolate for me,” she turned her head up to face him and batted her beautiful brown eyes at him.   


“Do you think you can just give me the eyes and it will work every time?” He raised an eyebrow.   


“Doesn’t it usually?” She raised an eyebrow in return.   


“Good point,” he chuckled. Pacey brushed a finger across her forehead and then headed in the direction of the kitchen.   


“Is everything okay at the restaurant?” Joey asked, watching him move around her kitchen with ease.   


“Yeah,” he turned the stove on to warm the milk and moved to get two mugs. “Kathy’s got it all under control. Dougie is going to check in tomorrow to see if they need anything.”   


“Is this the first vacation you’ve taken since you opened?”   


“Yup,” he nodded. “I could never bring myself to step away from it. I just never trusted anyone else to run it.”   


“Well if anyone can, Kathy is the one.” Joey said. He smiled at her in agreement and then turned back towards the stove. Joey rested her head on the armrest of the couch and turned the television on. She saw they had a few minutes until the episode started and smiled when Pacey joined her on the couch, handing her a mug.   


“I’m not going to lie to you,” he said. He watched as she took a sip and sighed appreciatively. “I think I’ve seen maybe four or five episodes of this entire show.”   


“You have the poster up at the restaurant,” she said. She stretched her legs out and rested them on his lap. He stretched his out and rested them on the coffee table, the two getting comfortable for the episode.   


“That’s a friend supporting a friend. I lived through these times, Jo. I experienced it all firsthand. There’s a lot from that time I don’t really want to relive,” he explained. Joey smiled sympathetically and nodded.   


“I know what you mean,” she said. “He’s introducing Andie and Jack next season.”   


“Is he?”   


“Yeah,” she nodded.   


“I can’t wait to see who he casts to play Andie,” he laughed. She laughed along with him. “That girl is unlike anyone we ever met.”   


“I remember when I first met her and all I could think was, how is anyone this happy all the time?” Joey shook her head. “Do you two still talk a lot?”   


“No,” he shook his head. “We keep in touch but not as much as I’d like.”   


“She’s a good person,” Joey smiled.   


“She is,” he nodded. “I did tell her about us the last time we talked.”   


“What did she say?”   


“That she was happy for us and that she’s always known how much I loved you,” Pacey said. He rubbed her calf softly and she smiled.   


“That’s sweet of her,” Joey said. She took a sip of her hot chocolate and sighed softly. He noticed the exhaustion on her face and that she was slightly paler than usual. Her eyes looked heavy and she just seemed drained of energy.   


“Are you okay?” Pacey squeezed her leg and she nodded.   


“Yeah,” she said. “I just haven’t been feeling so great.”   


“What’s wrong, sweetheart?”   


“Just drained,” she said. “I’ve been working a lot lately and I guess I just haven’t been sleeping as much as I should.”   


“I’m sorry, Jo.” Pacey’s eyes softened and he ran his fingers gently over her legs.   


“Having you in bed with me tonight will help me sleep better,” she admitted and then blushed at her admission.   


“I love you,” he grabbed her hand and pressed a kiss to the back of it.   


“I love you too,” her eyes twinkled with love and she squeezed his fingers. They shared a sweet smile before they heard the start of the episode, turning both of their attention to the screen.   


  


  


“You really cried,” Joey crawled back towards him after hanging up the phone. His eyes were still slightly red from crying and it warmed her insides. She loved getting to see the sides of Pacey that no one else ever did.   


“You’re going to hold this against me, aren’t you?” Pacey shot her an unamused look and she smiled.   


“I love a man who can get in touch with his emotions,” she wrapped an arm around his neck and pressed her face into his cheek. “What was it about the episode that got you?”  


“It was the choice,” he said. “He didn’t force her to stay or give her any ultimatums. He let her make the decision on her own about what made her happy.”   


“He let her follow her heart instead of making her feel guilty,” she whispered. Pacey nodded and pressed a kiss to her nose. “So, who do you think she is going to pick? Petey or Colby?”   


“Well Petey is the clear choice,” he smirked. She rolled her eyes and shook her head in amusement.   


“Obviously,” she chuckled. She knew it didn’t matter who her fictional character ended up with. Whether it be Colby or Petey, Joey knew the choice wouldn’t change anything. She ended up with the right person in her real life. Her triangle ended with the right choice. Pacey would always be the right choice.   


“Do you want to go to bed?” Pacey brushed a piece of hair off her face and could see the exhaustion in her eyes.   


“Yeah,” she nodded. She stood up from the couch and held out her hand to him. Pacey laced their fingers together, wrapped their joined hands around her waist, and followed her to the bedroom. She flicked off a lamp on the way and then closed the bedroom door behind them.   


“I’ll be right back,” Pacey squeezed her hip and she nodded as she watched him walk towards the bathroom.   


Joey grabbed his Bruins tee shirt from her dresser drawer and stripped off her clothes. She slid the shirt over her body and slid a pair of his boxers on. Joey tugged the hair tie from her hair and shook her hair out. She walked over to grab her hairbrush and sat on the edge of the bed. Pacey walked back into the room, wearing only a pair of boxers, and sat behind her on the bed. He took the brush from her hands and started to brush her hair. Joey let out a soft sight of content and closed her eyes, letting his gentle brushes lull her. He tossed the brush onto the nightstand and then scooted back into bed. She crawled up to join him and rested right next to him.   


“What time do you have to work tomorrow?” Pacey asked. He lifted the covers and covered the both of them and then opened his arm for her.   


“Nine,” she sighed. Joey rested her head on his chest and wrapped her arm around his waist. She felt his fingers start to brush through her hair and her eyes closed. “I should be off around five.”   


“I will be here waiting for you,” he said.   


“Hmm,” she murmured. “I like the sound of that.”   


“Go to sleep, sweetheart.” Pacey pressed a kiss to the top of her head and gently ran his fingers down the length of her arm.   


“I love you,” Joey lifted her head and pressed a kiss to his lips. Pacey smiled and pressed another kiss to her lips before she snuggled back into his arms.   


“I love you Jo,” Pacey promised.   


He heard her breathing even out and knew that she was asleep. Pacey looked down at her face and smiled softly. She looked so at peace and so content. It had been a long time since he saw her truly relaxed like this. He liked that she felt this content with him. He liked that she was finally letting all of her walls down around him. He liked that the two of them were finally settled and that they were settled together. Pacey loved her with every part of his heart and soul. She was the best part of him and his very best friend in the world. Life with Joey was all he ever wanted. After pressing one more gentle kiss to her forehead, his eyes closed and a smile graced his face. This was exactly where he belonged.  


  


  


“Bunny!” Audrey shrieked after Joey opened the front door to her apartment. The brunette’s eyes widened in surprise at the sight of her former roommate. She hadn’t expected to see her, she didn’t even know she was in New York. Then again, it was Audrey. She loved a good surprise.   


“Audrey?” Joey finally said. “What in the world are you doing here?”   


“Visiting you, of course!” Audrey said. She threw her arms around Joey and squeezed her tight. Joey hugged her back and then pulled back, smiling at her. She really had missed her former roommate.   


“Well come in,” Joey opened the door and gestured her inside. The bubbly blonde followed her inside and dropped a duffle bag down on the floor, surprising Joey. “Are you, uh, planning on staying here?”   


“Well duh,” she said. “Where else would I stay?”   


“It’s just-,” Joey started but was cut off by her boyfriend.   


“Hey Jo-,” Pacey walked into the room and then stopped in his tracks at the sight of Audrey. “Audrey, hey.”   


“Well hello,” Audrey looked between the two with an amused smile on her face. “I was unaware that Pacey was living here now.”   


“He’s not,” Joey shot her a look. “He’s here for the week.”   


“I should’ve brought some scrunchies with me,” Audrey teased and saw the immediate blush fill her old roommates face.   


“Audrey!” Joey glared at her. Pacey smirked and leaned against the kitchen counter. It was nice to see that some things never changed.   


“Well don’t you worry about me,” Audrey waved her off. “I needed to get out of California for a while and was drawn to here, to you.”   


“What’s going on?” Joey walked over and sat on the couch with the blonde.   


“Nothing’s wrong,” she shrugged. “My dad is still as annoying as ever. He told me that it’s time to find a real, big girl job.”   


“But you love what you do,” Joey frowned. “You love touring and singing.”   


“When has my father ever cared?” Audrey rolled her eyes.   


“I have some documents to read for the restaurant, so I’ll let the two of you talk.” Pacey said. He realized that this was a conversation that Audrey wanted to have with just Joey, and he took that as his cue to disappear. Joey smiled gratefully at her boyfriend and watched as he headed towards the bedroom. He ran a hand over the back of her head on the way and she winked at him in return.   


“So,” Joey turned back to face her friend. “What are you going to do?”   


“Avoid my problems for as long as possible,” she shrugged and dropped back on the couch. She saw the look of disbelief on the brunette’s face and laughed. “Relax Bunny. I actually have a job lined up.”   


“You do?” Joey widened her eyes in surprise.   


“Dawson actually offered me a job,” she nodded. “Something with the music part of the show. He said he’ll explain it better to me when I get back.”   


“You and Dawson, huh?” Joey raised a questioning eyebrow.   


“Are friends,” she shot her a look and then stood up to walk towards the kitchen. “Besides, it would be weird and uncomfortable for all of us if we dated.”   


“How?” Joey watched as the blonde moved around the kitchen. She opened the fridge and then closed it. She moved to the pantry and then pretended to rifle through it but closed it without grabbing anything.   


“Joey,” the blonde turned back around to face her and shot her a look of disbelief. “All the history in this group.”   


“That’s the key word, Audrey. History,” Joey stood up and walked over towards her. She grabbed her arm and stopped her pacing. She offered her a kind smile and raised a curious eyebrow. She recognized a guilty Audrey when she saw that. “Did something happen?”   


“We kissed,” Audrey blurted out and ran her fingers through her hair. “It was only once! I swear. I pushed him away as soon as I realized what was happening and told him that it would never happen again.”   


“Well why in the world would you do that?” Joey furrowed her brows.   


“Do what?”   


“Why would you tell him that it was never going to happen again?” Joey elaborated. “I can tell from your rambling and pacing that you want it to happen again.”   


“I just don’t want to upset anyone,” Audrey dropped her eyes and played with the hem of her shirt.   


“I can promise that you are not going to upset anyone. Your happiness is just as important as everyone else’s,” Joey insisted and squeezed her arm. “Do you think Dawson could make you happy?”   


“Maybe,” Audrey shrugged. “I honestly don’t know.”   


“Then maybe you should find out,” Joey suggested. In a weird way, she could actually picture Dawson and Audrey together. They were so different but similar enough. Audrey could get him out of his sheltered life and Dawson could keep her grounded.   


“And maybe we should get your boyfriend to stop hiding in the bedroom and make us dinner,” Audrey said.   


“I like the way you think,” she laughed.   


“Go work your magic,” Audrey waved her off towards the bedroom. “I am going to snoop around your apartment and find the non-nerdy sections.”   


“Oh whatever,” Joey rolled her eyes and shook her head.   


She walked in the direction of the bedroom and then slowly opened the door. Pacey was sprawled out on the bed, a document in his hand, and he was sound asleep. She smiled and closed the door behind her, walking in the direction of the bed. Slowly sitting on the bed next to him, her eyes softened at the sight of him asleep. He looked so peaceful and she felt guilty waking him up. She almost decided against it but knew he would never fall asleep tonight if he kept sleeping. Joey slowly ran her finger across his cheek and watched him flip onto his side. She bit her lip and leaned forward to press a kiss to his cheek, then his other cheek, then his forehead, and then his nose.   


“Hmmm,” Pacey murmured sleepily. “That’s most definitely my favorite way to wake up.”   


“I was going to let you sleep but it’s late in the day and know you’ll never sleep tonight,” she scooted closer to him and snuggled into his side. He wrapped his arms around her and pressed a kiss to her lips.   


“Thanks sweetheart.”   


“Plus, Audrey wants you to make dinner for us.”   


“What part of vacation does nobody understand?” Pacey mumbled. She wrapped her arms tighter around his waist and pressed a kiss to his stubbly jaw.   


“I’ll make it worth your while,” Joey promised. He smirked and the two shared another kiss, this one more passionate than the last. He pulled back and smiled tenderly at her, his chest filling with love for his girlfriend.   


“Are you feeling better?” Pacey tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.   


“A bit,” she nodded. “I just can’t get this exhaustion under control.”   


“You slept through the night last night,” he frowned. He was starting to get concerned that maybe it was something more than just exhaustion. He knew she would play it off like nothing but he was going to keep any eye on her.   


“I know,” she sighed.   


“Well, we can go to bed again early tonight.”   


“Audrey’s here,” she shot him a look. “There’s no such thing as early bedtime.”   


“Maybe she goes to bed earlier now that she’s older,” he suggested. Joey just raised an eyebrow and he laughed. “Okay, you’re right. So, dinner?”   


“Just let’s lay here for a few more minutes,” she whispered and snuggled further into his side.   


“Of course,” he pressed a kiss to her forehead and held her close. As he held her close, Pacey never wanted to let her go.   


  


  


The next day, Audrey insisted that Joey play tourist with her. The brunette pleaded with her boyfriend to save her but he just waved them out the door with a smile. She glared the entire time and he just smirked in return. Pacey was sitting in the living room now, waiting for Jack to show up. He had finally convinced his friend to get out of Capeside for the night. He knew Jack needed a day without any responsibilities and Grams insisted that she would be okay with Amy alone. With Gail next door and Doug a phone call away, Jack felt comfortable enough to spend the night in the city. Pacey could tell that he was looking forward to spending some time with his two best friends.   


He tapped his finger against his thigh and checked his watch again. There had been a lot going on in his mind lately and was grateful that his friend would be there to help him out. He needed someone desperately to talk to and Jack had become that person in the recent years. Since living together in college, Jack became his go to person when things got tough. The two formed a close friendship that Pacey wished they had formed in high school. They had always been close, but living in Boston really gave them the chance to bond. Pacey finally heard a knock at the door and jumped off the couch. Swinging open the front door, he smiled at the sight of his friend.   


“Hey Jackers,” Pacey gestured him inside.   


“Hey Pace,” Jack walked into the apartment and dropped his duffle bag onto the kitchen table. “So, this is where junior editors live?”   


“Apparently so,” he smirked.   


“It’s so clean in here,” Jack looked around. It looked like the exact kind of apartment Joey would live in. Everything was neatly organized and nothing looked like it didn’t belong. There were pictures and books scattered around the living room. He smiled at a picture of her and Pacey from high school, not surprised at all that it was front and center in the living room.   


“Which is a miracle considering Audrey is bunking here for a few days,” Pacey laughed.   


“Ah Audrey,” Jack dropped onto the chair in the living room and shook his head. “It’s been a very long time since I’ve seen her.”   


“She’s exactly the same,” he said and then chuckled. “Maybe a little blonder.”   


“Well I can’t wait to see her later. Are we meeting them or something?”   


“Yeah,” he nodded. “Jo suggested a place we meet them for dinner later on.”   


“So,” Jack leaned back as he watched his friend sit across from him on the couch.   


“So?” Pacey raised an eyebrow in return.   


“Come on, Pace. You’ve got that Pacey thinking face on. The one that makes you look constipated,” he raised an eyebrow.   


“I do not look constipated!” Pacey glared at him. He watched his friend laugh and roll his eyes.   


“Lay it on me,” he gestured for him to talk.   


“Lay what on you?” Pacey raised an eyebrow. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”   


“You have always sucked at lying, Witter. What’s going on?”   


“So things with Jo have been pretty great lately,” Pacey said and smiled softly. “Like really great. The two of us are better than we’ve ever been.”   


“You are back to being nauseatingly happy,” Jack said and playfully rolled his eyes. “Anybody with eyes can see that.”   


“Anyway,” Pacey shot him an amused grin. “I just really love her, man. I want forever with her. It’s not something that’s ever going to change.”   


“I know,” he nodded. Jack knew that Pacey and Joey’s relationship was for the long haul this time. After all the two of them had been through, there was no way it was going to fall apart again.   


“It’s been three months,” Pacey said. He bounced his knee nervously and looked over at his friend. He saw the questioning look in Jack’s eyes and dug his hand into his pocket. He slid out a small velvet box and Jack’s eyes widened, almost falling off the chair in shock.   


“Is that?” Jack was practically bouncing in his chair. Pacey smirked and nodded.   


“I’m going to ask her to marry me.”   


  


  


“Okay, spill it Bunny!” Audrey shoved her friend into a chair in the coffee shop and narrowed her eyes at her.   


“Spill what?” Joey took a sip of her hot chocolate and narrowed her eyes at her friend.   


“Spill whatever it is on your mind,” Audrey insisted. “You have looked so deep in thought since the minute we walked out the door this morning. Did you and Pacey have a fight?”   


“Not at all,” she shook her head and wrapped her hands around the warm mug. “Things are really great between the two of us. This is the happiest the two of us have been since we set sail in high school.”   


“Then why do you look like something is bothering you?”   


“Oh,” Joey chewed on her bottom lip and looked down at the dark liquid in her mug. She had wanted to talk to Pacey about this first. Well, she had wanted to discuss both of these things with him first. She figured talking about one of them with Audrey might actually help her. It may some of the stress out of her mind.   


“What’s going on?” Audrey narrowed her eyes, feeling concerned for her friend. “Is it bad?”   


“Not at all,” she shook her head. She started to drum her fingers against the mug and took a deep breath.   


“Okay seriously,” the blonde shot her a look. “You are freaking me out. What is it?”   


“I’m late.”   



	11. Chapter 11

“Where the hell are they?” Audrey grumbled. She looked down and contemplated eating another piece of bread.  


“Chill,” Joey chuckled and took a sip of her water. She checked her watch and realized they were a little late. “We told them seven-thirty. It’s only seven-forty.”  


“But Pacey is always on time!” The blonde whined.  


“Jack is not,” the brunette said. She looked over at the door and smiled when she saw her boyfriend walk into the restaurant. He was so handsome. He and Jack were deep in conversation, and then started to look around for them. Jack spotted the two of them first and then nodded his head in the direction of the table. Soon, the boys were at the table and greeting them.  


“Hey,” Pacey leaned down to kiss Joey. “Sorry we’re late, Jack decided he needed to shower at the very last second.”  


“I smelt like train!” Jack insisted. He hugged Audrey in greeting and then pressed a kiss to Joey’s cheek before sitting next to the blonde. Pacey dropped into the chair next to Joey, across from Jack. The waitress came by to take the guys drink orders and then they placed their orders for food quickly after. Pacey draped an arm across the back of Joey’s chair and his fingers started to play with her hair.  


“So,” Audrey looked between the two of them. “What kind of couple are you?”  


“What do you mean?” Joey furrowed her brows and laughed. She rested one of her hands on Pacey’s thigh, tracing circles around it with her thumb.  


“Are you an annoying, over the top cuddly couple?” Audrey started to ask but Jack quickly interjected.  


“Yes!”  


“Jack,” Joey shot him a look and he just shrugged.  


“I remember high school like it was just yesterday,” he said. “I was concerned if Pacey didn’t have his hands all over you.”  


“I believe it was the opposite,” Pacey interjected and gently tugged on a piece of her hair. “It was Jo that couldn’t keep her hands off of me.”  


“And there’s that adorable delusion of yours,” Joey tugged on his earlobe.  


“You love me,” he tweaked her nose.  


“You keep telling yourself that, sweetheart.” She peeked her tongue out between her teeth but the twinkle in her eyes told him just how much she did love him.  


“Oh gross,” Audrey groaned. “You are one of those couples that pretend no one else is in the room.”  


“No we aren’t,” Joey rolled her eyes.  


“Yes we are,” Pacey disagreed. She swatted his gut and they all laughed.  


“Last I saw you,” Audrey turned to face Jack and he raised an eyebrow before taking a sip of his beer. “You were dating that guy. What was his name? Daniel? Derek?”  


“David,” Jack said and then winced. “That’s the last time you saw me?”  


“It was,” she nodded. “So, are you dating anyone now?”  


“I am,” he nodded and then chuckled.  


“What’s so funny?” Audrey narrowed her eyes when she saw Joey and Pacey laugh.  


“I’m dating Doug,” Jack said and saw the confused look on the blonde’s face. “Doug Witter.”  


“You’re dating Pacey’s brother?” Audrey widened her eyes in surprise. “Since when?”  


“Like nine months or so now,” he said.  


“And how do you feel about that?” Audrey turned to face Pacey.  


“I’m totally cool with it,” he said. “He chills Dougie out.”  


“I miss a lot when I’m out in California,” Audrey pouted. “And Dawson sucks at filling in on gossip.”  


“Dawson?” Jack asked. “You and Dawson?”  


“Are friends,” she shot Joey a look when she noticed her snicker.  


“For now,” Joey mumbled. Pacey and Jack looked at her in confusion but she just took a sip of her water.  


“And what about you two?” Audrey asked.  


“What about us?” Pacey asked. “Joey’s given you the rundown on our reunion.”  


“The distance, duh!” Audrey rolled her eyes. She noticed Joey shift in her chair and chew on her bottom lip. “New York or Capeside? Or maybe Boston? Or California?”  


“Well we can definitely tell you no to California,” Joey rolled her eyes. She looked at Pacey out of the corner of her eyes and noticed that he looked calm. She was slightly concerned that he didn’t have a reaction.  


“Or Boston,” Pacey chimed in. “I’d say those days are behind us now.”  


“There’s always our old apartment complex,” Jack smirked and Pacey laughed.  


“That was a good apartment.”  


“I miss running up the spiral staircase,” Jack laughed.  


“You mean when you fell flat on your ass every time you were drunk?” Pacey smirked.  


“I was certain I almost broke my arm that one time,” he shuttered at the memory. “And you just laughed at me for twenty minutes.”  


“It was hysterical.”  


“Whatever,” Jack threw a piece of bread at him.  


Joey noticed that Pacey had completely changed the topic of their living situation and frowned. Had he not thought about living together? Was he content with living apart still? She knew that he missed her while they were apart, but did he want a change? Was he going to be mad when she broached the topic that’s been weighing heavily on her mind? She then thought about how she was possibly pregnant and wondered how he would react to that. Her mind was starting to swirl all over the place when she felt Pacey gently massage her neck. She noticed Audrey and Jack deep in conversation and then turned to look over at him and saw the concerned look on his face.  


“Are you okay?” He leaned over to whisper in her ear.  


“Yeah,” she nodded and offered him a half smile. She knew that he didn’t believe her but also knew that he wasn’t going to push it in public.  


“I love you,” Pacey cupped the back of her head and kissed her softly.  


“I love you too,” she squeezed his thigh under the table before Audrey engaged them in conversation.  


As hard as she tried and as much as she wanted to, Joey just couldn’t get into the conversation. She just sat quietly and listened to them talk around her and was grateful when the food arrived. She could blame her eating on her lack of input. Her mind was just too wrapped up with questions about her and Pacey’s future.  


  


  


“So,” Pacey untucked his shirt from his khakis and turned to face his girlfriend. Joey looked up from where she was taking off her necklace and raised an eyebrow. “Do you want to tell me what’s bothering you?”  


“Why would you assume something is bothering me?” Joey averted his eyes and turned back to face the vanity.  


After dinner, Jack and Audrey decided that they weren’t ready to call it a night yet. They wanted to spend a little more time in the city, and decided to play tourist. Pacey and Joey opted to just head home and call it an early night. Her mind was all over the place and he could tell something was bothering her. He wanted to talk to her before it boiled over into something bad. The cab ride home was pretty quiet. Joey curled up into his side and let him soothe her with the gentle brushes of his fingers through her hair. Once they made it back to the apartment, Pacey was ready to confront whatever was bothering his girlfriend.  


“You have been quiet since Audrey mentioned our living situation,” he unbuttoned his shirt and then tossed it towards his duffle bag. He saw her shoulders tense up and knew he was right on the mark. “Jo.”  


“You were pretty quiet on the topic,” she mumbled. “It’s like you almost didn’t want to talk about it.”  


“Or maybe I didn’t want to discuss it for the first time with our friends,” he was surprised by her accusatory tone. “Maybe I thought it was something that we should talk about for the first time just us.”  


“Have you thought about it?”  


“Of course I have,” he said. Pacey leaned back against her dresser and watched as she slipped on one of his tee shirts. “Jo, can you stop moving around and talk to me?”  


“We’ve never talked about it,” she sighed. Joey walked over and took a seat on the edge of her bed, turning to fully face him. “It’s kind of always been something we just wait to see what happens.”  


“But now we are at the point where we need to decide,” he finished for her. “Or have a plan in place.”  


“I kind of, sort of,” she shifted uncomfortably and he furrowed his brows at her weird behavior.  


“You what?”  


“I’ve been thinking a lot about this, Pace.”  


“And what have you been thinking?”  


“I want to move to Capeside,” she said. Pacey seemed to freeze in his spot and blinked at her. “Before you say no-,”  


“No,” he shook his head.  


“Pacey,” Joey narrowed her eyes at him.  


“Jo,” he clutched the dresser with his hands and shook his head again. “All you’ve ever wanted was to get out of Capeside. You couldn’t wait to get as far away as possible. You are finally living the life that you want for yourself, in a place that makes you happy. I’m not letting you give all of that up for me.”  


“Pace, I was eighteen when I said all of that. I have grown and seen the world. I have gotten out and seen what there is. I am in a career where I can work from anywhere,” she said.  


“Joey-,”  


“Stop it,” she snapped. He crossed his arms and clenched his jaw to refrain from saying anything. “Why are you the only one who gets to make big moves for our relationship? You have a restaurant, Pacey. A restaurant that I know you don’t want to walk away from, that you can’t walk away from. If I can be the one to move, why are you being so stubborn about it?”  


“Because I don’t want this to be something that you will regret in five years from now,” he said. “You want this now because we are so new and so happy. What happens in five years from now when you feel stuck in Capeside?”  


“Do you think this is something I just woke this morning and decided?” Joey stood up and crossed her arms. “Do you think I haven’t been thinking about this for the last month? The last two months? You don’t think this crosses my mind every time one of us boards the train to leave?”  


“I can’t let you give up this life for me, Jo. I can’t,” he shook his head. She took a deep breath and let out a frustrated sigh. She knew he would be stubborn about this and it frustrated her beyond belief.  


“It’s not just for you, Pacey. It’s for us,” she said. “I’m making these decisions for us. It’s my turn to make the big romantic gesture.”  


“Jo,” he lowered his eyes and she took a step closer.  


“I know what I want. I’m not going to wake up one day and regret this,” she insisted. “I want to build a life with you in Capeside. I want to build a family with you at the beach house. I want our kids to run around your restaurant and eventually work there one day. I want to sit on the back porch with you, looking at the stars and overlooking the creek. I want to be with you and that’s never going to change. New York gave me the confidence I needed, but Capeside is going to give me the home I crave.”  


“I-,” he searched her eyes and saw nothing but sincerity. He wanted all of that with her. He wanted kids, a house, and a porch to look at the stars.  


“My boss said I can work from home four days a week and then come into the office on Monday’s for all my meetings. She said that I can work from anywhere,” she said. Pacey ran his fingers through his hair and let out a tired sigh. “Why are you fight this so much?”  


“Because I can’t lose you, Jo. I can’t handle the idea that one day you will wake up and regret your decision. I won’t be able to survive if you walked away from me again,” he said. Joey’s eyes softened and her heart clenched.  


“Pacey Witter, I want you to listen to me and listen to me good.” Joey placed her hands on her hips and he looked at her. “I am telling you what I want. I am telling you that this is what I want. You know me, you’ve always known me. I am not the kind of person to just make a decision like this if I haven’t completely thought it through. This is my decision, this is my choice. I am moving to Capeside and that’s final.”  


“Final, huh?” Pacey chuckled softly. She felt herself smile, despite the tension. “And you’re sure this is what you really want?”  


“Pacey,” she glared at him and he lifted his hands in surrender. “There’s one more thing.”  


“And what’s that?”  


“I may have put an offer on the beach house,” she said. Joey watched his eyes widen and he stood up straight.  


“That was you?”  


“What do you mean, ‘that was you’?” Joey narrowed her eyes.  


“I’ve been tracking the house,” he explained. “I’ve been keeping an eye on it to see if anyone would make an offer. There was this part of me that couldn’t stand the thought of someone else buying it. When I found out someone made an offer, it felt like a sign. It felt like a sign that maybe I wasn’t meant to be in Capeside.”  


“And now?” She bit her lip. Pacey stepped closer to her and placed his hands on her hips.  


“And now I think you’re crazy and continue to surprise me,” he pressed a kiss to her one cheek and then the other. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and buried her fingers in his hair as his lips moved down to her neck. “And I think I love you.”  


“I love you too,” she whispered and closed her eyes when his lips moved to her throat. She tightened her grip on his hair when he nibbled on her throat, and let out a moan of pleasure. “You’re sure you’re okay with me moving to Capeside, Pace?”  


“Are you sure _you’re_ okay with it?” Pacey countered, lifting his head to lock eyes with her. Joey gently brushed her fingers across his cheek and smiled softly.  


“This is the second decision I’ve made in my life that I am completely certain of,” she promised.  


“What was the first?” Pacey furrowed his brows. Joey cupped his face between her hands and looked tenderly into his eyes.  


“Loving you,” she whispered. Pacey felt his heart swirl with love and he crashed his lips against hers, his love for her completely overpowering him. He lifted her up into his arms and carried her over to the bed, determined to show her just how much he truly loved her.  


  


  


“Pacey!” Bessie greeted and then raised an eyebrow. “What in the world are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be in New York with Jo?”  


“I am,” he nodded and then stepped inside the B&B with her. “But she ended up getting the rest of the week off and wanted to come sailing for the weekend.”  


“I heard Jack was with you guys for a day or two,” she said. The two walked into the kitchen and she gestured towards the table while she went to go get coffee for them.  


“Yeah,” he said. “We all came back together. Jo’s with him right now, spending time with Amy and Grams.”  


“And you wanted to spend time with me instead?” She shot him a skeptical look.  


“I always want to spend time with you, Bess.” Pacey winked at her and she rolled her eyes.  


“As charming as ever,” she placed a mug in front of him and then sat down across from him.  


“Is Bodie here?” Pacey asked before taking a sip of his coffee.  


“He is,” she nodded and then called out for him. They saw him walk into the kitchen a minute later and smiled when he saw Pacey.  


“Hey Pacey,” Bodie shook his hand and then looked at Bessie. “Is everything okay?”  


“Pacey was looking for you. Apparently he’d rather spend time with the two of us than Joey,” she teased.  


“Well I never thought I’d see that day,” Bodie raised an eyebrow and then sat down next to his girlfriend.  


“If the mocking is over now,” he shot them a look. They laughed and Bessie gestured for him to continue. “I was actually hoping to talk to the two of you.”  


“What’s going on?” Bessie asked, noticing the serious look on his face. “Is Jo okay?”  


“She’s great,” he nodded. “Stubborn as always but great.”  


“So what’s going on?” Bodie chimed in.  


“I think you two know how I feel about Jo. I’m pretty sure every person in my life knows how I feel about Jo. She’s everything to me and all I want in life is to make her happy,” he said. Bessie and Bodie shared a smile, appreciating his words. “She’s it for me. She’s all I want and need in life. I plan to spend the rest of my life making her happy and helping to make all her dreams come true.”  


“We know that, Pace.” Bessie promised. If there was one thing in life she never doubted, it was how much Pacey loved her younger sister. It’s been so obvious to anyone around them since their teenage years and probably even before that.  


“For as long as I can remember, you two have been the greatest support system to her. You raised her, made sure she had everything she needed, and made sure she was happy. I know just how much the two of you mean to Jo and how important your approvals are,” he said. “So, with your blessings of course, I would like to ask Joey to marry me.”  


“Oh!” Bessie gasped and covered her mouth. Her eyes welled with tears and she smiled softly at him, reaching across the table to grab his hand. “Pace, you know you’ve always been like family to us. You have always known how much we love you and respect you.”  


“There’s nothing more we’d love than for you to be an official part of this family,” Bodie added.  


“So, is that a yes?” Pacey smiled wide and they returned his smile.  


“That’s an absolutely,” Bessie squeezed his hand. “Besides, if anyone can keep my stubborn sister in line it’s you.”  


“I admire the fact that you think I keep her in line,” he chuckled. “You should know better than anyone else that Josephine Potter sets her own path of life.”  


“Except when it comes to you,” Bessie insisted. “You are the one who always pulls her back in. You’re the one who challenges her. You’re the one who makes her smile in a way no other person can.”  


“Quit making me blush, Bess.” Pacey waved her off but appreciated her words. They filled him with happiness and loved that Joey’s family was so accepting of their relationship.  


As he continued to talk over coffee with Bessie and Bodie, his mind was on the upcoming proposal. He had the ring, he had the blessing, he had the girl, and now all he needed was a plan. His mind was already running through different possibilities. All he knew right now was that at the end of the day, Joey would hopefully agree to be his wife.  


  


  


“Okay,” Jack dropped down into one of the chairs on the deck of Pacey’s boat. He watched his friend sit down next to him and pull Amy into his lap. “You’ve got the ring, you’ve got the blessing and you’ve got Joey. What else is left?”  


“An actual place to propose,” he laughed.  


“You could just propose on this boat,” Jack suggested. “You two have always loved boats and water.”  


“I want it to be somewhere that means something to our relationship. A place that holds significance in our relationship,” Pacey explained. He brushed some of the hair off Amy’s face and smiled at her.  


“So take her to the ski lodge again,” he smirked. Pacey smirked and laughed.  


“She may actually kill me,” he said. He stood Amy up on his thighs and jiggled her tiny body, causing a huge giggle to escape her lips. “What do you think, pretty girl? Where should Uncle Pacey propose to Aunt Joey?”  


“Jo!” Amy exclaimed. She grabbed Pacey’s nose and tugged on it. He scrunched his face and she laughed.  


“Are you trying to break my nose?” He tickled her belly and she giggled. “Because your Aunt Jo used to try and break it all the time, too.”  


“I always forget how much the two of you two fought,” Jack laughed. “I want to say I was surprised when you got together but I’m really not. The sexual tension was clear as day.”  


“So we’ve been told,” Pacey laughed.  


“I can’t believe it took you until junior year to kiss her.”  


“I actually kissed her before junior year,” he admitted. He saw the surprise on his friend’s face and laughed. Snuggling Amy back into his arms, he pressed a kiss to the top of her head as she curled into his chest. “It was sophomore year. We were working on a science project and I was surprisingly attracted to her. I decided to take a chance and kiss her.”  


“What did she do?”  


“She pushed me away, as usual,” he smirked. “She was in the middle of her Dawson obsession and needed to work that all out.”  


“You two were so confusing back then,” Jack chuckled.  


“We were so confusing until about three months ago,” Pacey said.  


“I don’t know,” Jack shrugged. “You two have quite the love story. Anything you’d change?”  


“Honestly? No,” he shook his head. “All the heartbreak, all the fights, all the confusion. It’s made us the couple that we are today. We both needed to grow separately to grow together. We had to find the people we are meant to be before we could be the couple we are meant to be. Our history is special and it’s ours. I wouldn’t change a moment of it.”  


“That was pretty deep,” Jack said. He admired the love that Pacey and Joey had for each other. He admired the way they never gave up on each other, no matter how tough it got. He had no doubt in his mind that they would make it this time around.  


“Oh,” Pacey widened his eyes and sat up straight. “I think I have an idea on where I want to propose to Jo.”  


“Tell me!” Jack demanded.  


“Me!” Amy exclaimed and the two men laughed.  


  


  


“You have your serious face on,” Bessie sat on the chair next to Joey’s. The two looked out at the creek and let the warm August weather comfort them.  


“I do not,” Joey rolled her eyes and took a sip of her iced tea. “I’m just enjoying the warm weather and company of my sister.”  


“Okay now I know something is up,” Bessie raised an eyebrow. “What’s going on?”  


“Why does something have to be going on?”  


“Well let’s see,” she said. “You and Pacey decided to come back to Capeside when you were supposed to be spending a quiet week together in New York. You look even happier than usual. You have this weird glow to you. You just seem content.”  


“I’m happy,” Joey said. “Is there anything wrong with that?”  


“No,” she said. “But I also know it’s more than that. So again I ask, what’s going on?”  


“You’re annoying, you know that right?”  


“Sure,” she shrugged. “Now quit avoiding the subject.”  


“Pace and I have made a decision about our living situation,” Joey said.  


“Is he moving to New York?”  


“No,” she shook her head. “I’m moving to Capeside.”  


“You what?” Bessie widened her eyes in surprise. “You are willingly moving back here?”  


“Yes Bess,” she nodded. “I love Pacey, so much. He’s always made so many sacrifices and big moves for our relationship. He loves his job and he loves his restaurant and he worked so hard to make it possible. I couldn’t possibly ask him to give that up for me when I can work from anywhere.”  


“And you? Will you be happy here?”  


“I will,” she smiled. “This town isn’t as horrible as I’ve always made it seem. Plus, Pacey’s here. I can’t be miserable in a place where he is.”  


“You know,” Bessie nudged her arm. “I’m here too.”  


“Yeah, you’re kind of alright.” She smirked. Bessie rolled her eyes and swatted Joey’s arm. “There’s more.”  


“Oh?”  


“I put an offer on the old beach house that he lived in during high school with Gretchen,” she explained.  


“Aw,” Bessie smiled. “That’s sweet. Any word on it?”  


“I should hopefully hear back soon,” she said. “The place needs a lot of work but I know that we could make it something incredible.”  


“Sounds like you have it all figured out.”  


“For the first time in a really long time, I think we really do.”  


  


  


“You remembered to tie up the boat this time, right?” Joey teased. He helped her step up to solid land and smirked.  


“Yes Josephine.”  


“You are about the only person in this world that can away with calling me that and it’s only because I like the way it sounds coming out of your mouth,” she said and then blushed.  


“Is that right?” Pacey kinked an eyebrow at her and she bit her lip.  


“Shut up,” she mumbled. “So, what in the world are we doing here?”  


“Don’t tell me you forgot the significance of this place, Potter.”  


“You mean when we went hunting for snails, ruined our clothes, and then you forced me to strip down?” Joey raised an eyebrow at him. They were in the exact same spot where they had been their sophomore year of high school after they had to swim across the creek because Pacey forgot to tie up their boat. She saw his jeep off to the side where her truck had been parked all those years ago. She smiled fondly at the memory. It was one of the rare times they spent time alone together without Dawson.  


“I did not force you into anything,” he stepped behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist as they walked towards his jeep. She looked all around and smiled fondly.  


“I remember you tried to peek over the truck at me,” she laughed.  


“I most certainly did peek,” he pressed a kiss to her neck and she gasped.  


“Pace!” Joey turned around to face him and swatted his arm. “I knew you would, you perv!”  


“Prude,” he kissed her nose and then laughed. “I was a red-blooded teenage boy. What in the world did you expect?”  


“You kissed me that night too.”  


“And as per tradition, you shoved me away.” Pacey smirked and she rolled her eyes.  


“You surprised me!”  


“Don’t I always?”  


“I’d like to think I know you by now and can anticipate your next move,” she said.  


“Is that right?”  


“Exactly right,” she nodded. “Like I know exactly why you brought me here today.”  


“You do, do you?” Pacey raised an eyebrow, hoping that she didn’t actually know why he brought her here. He had told her he just wanted to go out onto the creek, just the two of them. She was so excited that she quickly agreed.  


“Ever since I told you I wanted to move to Capeside and since Jen passed away, you’ve been feeling very nostalgic. This was the place where the two of us actually started to become something resembling friends,” she explained. He inwardly smiled that she was wrong and it remained a surprise. “You were what? Confused, surprised, and attracted?”  


“You remember that?” He laughed and felt little flutters of butterflies that she had remembered his words from that day.  


“You’re not the only one who remembers everything, sweetheart.”  


“You were actually fun to be around when you loosened up,” he wrapped his arms around her waist and she rested her hands on his shoulders.  


“I’m pretty sure you said something along those lines too,” she laughed.  


“And this was the exact spot where my feelings shifted from disdain,” she swatted his chest and he laughed. “To attraction. This is the exact spot where I started to feel something more than just friendship for you.”  


“Really?”  


“Really,” he nodded and then widened his eyes. “Uh, Jo.”  


“What?” Joey raised an eyebrow, surprised by his change in demeanor.  


“The, uh, boat. It may be floating away.”  


“Pacey!” Joey spun around and threw her hands up in frustration. “I’m not going to be swimming-,” she stopped when she realized the boat was still tied up. Confused, she turned back around and gasped. Pacey was kneeling down in front of her, a small velvet box in his hands, and that’s when she noticed the writing on the ground surrounding him. The words **MARRY ME?** Were painted all around him. Her eyes widened and she covered her mouth, tears pricking her eyes. “Pace?”  


“I don’t think it’s a secret that I love you, Jo. I have loved you for as long as I can remember and probably even longer than I acknowledged. You are the best part of me and my favorite person in the world. You have challenged me every day to want more for my life and pushed me to be the best version of myself,” he said. Tears started to trickle down her cheeks and she felt her heart pounding inside of her chest. “You’re my best friend, my soulmate, the love of my life, my one true love. You are the person I want to spend every day with. The person I want to share all my stories with. You’re my north star.”  


“Pacey,” she whispered and swallowed back a sob. He opened the box and her eyes widened. A gorgeous two carat diamond was staring back at her with two little diamonds on either side of it. The smaller diamonds on the side were a shade of blue that looked like the ocean and Pacey’s eyes. It was simple, beautiful, and eloquent. It was perfect.  


“You’re it for me, Jo. This is it for me,” his hands shook as he held up the ring to her. “Josephine Potter, will you marry me? Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”  


“Yes!” Joey exclaimed and dropped to her knees, throwing her arms around his shoulder. “Of course I will, Pace.”  


“I love you so much,” he hugged her tight and buried his face in her neck.  


“I love you so much, sweetheart.” Joey pulled back and pressed a kiss to his lips, before smothering his entire face with kisses. The two were a teary, laughing mess when they pulled back to smile at each other.  


“If I could have your hand, my dear.”  


“You may,” she held up her left hand. He pulled the ring out of the box, held her shaky hand in his, and then slowly slid the ring onto her finger. The two looked down at the ring and it felt like their hearts were beating as one. Pacey leaned down and pressed a kiss to the ring, sending her racing heart into overdrive.  


“Perfect,” he whispered. Joey looked at her now fiancée, watching him stare at the ring on her finger and peppering kisses to her knuckles. She had no idea what possessed her to blurt it out. Maybe it was the moment, maybe it was the love, maybe it was his adoring face but the words came flying out of her mouth.  


“I think I’m pregnant,” she said. Pacey’s eyes flew up to hers and widened almost instantly.  


“I, you, what?” Pacey stuttered. “You think or you are?”  


“I think,” she said. “I haven’t wanted to take a test without you and wasn’t sure how to tell you but something about this moment made the words come flying out.”  


“Well come on,” Pacey tugged on her hand.  


“What? Where?” Joey stumbled to her feet with him and followed after him to the jeep.  


“We have the marriage topic settled, now it’s time to find out the baby future.”  


“Don’t you want to celebrate the engagement first?”  


“Why just celebrate the engagement when we could be celebrating an engagement and a baby?” Pacey stopped to smile at her and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “Do you want to go find out our future?”  


“I think I do,” she nodded and smiled. She tugged on the front of his shirt, pressing their lips together in a kiss that left them breathless, then pulled back to smile at him. “I love you, sweetheart.”  


“I love you, Jo.” Pacey pressed another kiss to her lips and smiled a bright smile at her. “Shall we?”  


“Home, Jeeves!”  


“Yes, Miss Daisy.”  


  


  


Pacey sat on the edge of his bed and waited for Joey to come out of the bathroom. His leg bounced anxiously and he played with the wristband of his watch. After making it back to his jeep, the two headed to the nearest convenient store to purchase a pregnancy test. Joey had purchased three of them, insisting that it was better to be completely certain. He just laughed at her but agreed with her sentiment. She chugged on a bottle of water to ensure she had pee ready for the tests and then they were off to Pacey’s apartment. She pressed a kiss to his cheek and then headed off in the direction, leaving him alone with his thoughts.  


Not even two hours ago, he was proposing to her. Now he was waiting to find out if his immediate future had a baby in its plans. A baby. A little piece of him and a little piece of Joey. A product of their true love. A tiny human that was created in a moment of pure ecstasy and love. He had always wanted to have children with her. Miniature versions of them that would become the center of their universe. He knew that any baby of theirs would fill him with a love that he didn’t think was possible. He already loved the idea of a baby with Joey and he wasn’t even sure if there was a baby to love yet. As he stared at the bathroom door, he couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped his lips.  


“What’s so funny, Witter?” Joey asked, walking out of the bathroom and sitting on the bed with him.  


“I’m just thinking about our timing,” he said. He took her hand in his and twirled her engagement ring around her finger.  


“You mean, you give me an engagement ring and I raise you a possible baby?” She teased.  


“You did always love a good competition,” he nudged her side and smirked. Joey laughed and rested her head on his shoulder, smiling when he pressed a kiss to her forehead.  


“What are you thinking, sweetheart?”  


“That I love you and can’t wait for our future,” he admitted.  


“Hmm,” she hummed. “I love the sound of that. Our future.”  


“You know,” he said. “There are going to be a lot of people that want to help plan our wedding.”  


“Hey Pace?” Joey sat up and looked at him.  


“Yeah?”  


“Can we vow now to keep it small? Keep it the wedding that we want it to be?”  


“Of course, sweetheart.” Pacey brushed a piece of hair off her face and smiled softly at her. “It will be the wedding that we want.”  


“I would be completely okay with it just being the two of us,” Joey admitted.  


“As much as I would love that,” he pressed a kiss to her lips. “I’d love to see our first wedding anniversary and I think Bess would kill me if I ran off with you to elope.”  


“Jack too,” she chuckled.  


“Probably should just have a wedding for all of them,” he teased.  


“I mean, if we must.” Joey giggled. He laughed and pulled her into his arms, pressing a kiss to her lips. Just as the two started to get lost in their kiss, an alarm sounded and caused the two to jump apart. Their eyes locked and they knew that this was the moment of truth. This would be the moment that told them their future.  


“Are you ready?” Pacey asked.  


“Can you look for me?” Joey asked, her stomach suddenly twisting anxiously.  


“Sure,” he nodded. Pacey stood up and pressed a kiss to her forehead before turning to walk into the bathroom. Joey twirled the engagement ring around her finger anxiously as she waited for him to return. “One means negative and two means positive, right?” Pacey called from the bathroom.  


“Right,” she called back. She chewed on her bottom lip and felt the minutes drag. What was taking him so long? Why wasn’t he coming back? She was about to stand up when he walked back into the bedroom with her. Joey tried to gauge his face for an answer but it was completely neutral. He looked up and locked eyes with her.  


For once in her life, Joey couldn’t read Pacey’s eyes. She couldn’t tell what they were trying to tell her. He just looked at her and she bit her lip.  


“So?” Joey asked. “Am I pregnant or not?”  



	12. Chapter 12

Joey took a deep breath and twirled her new engagement ring around her finger. It was surreal to think that the ring was placed on her finger less than twenty-four hours ago but it felt like it had been there forever. It was now a piece of her and she never wanted to be without it. It was a symbol of the love she and Pacey shared. A promise of the vow the two intended to make to each other. Joey crossed her arms over stomach and took a step closer to her destination. Her insides turned and she felt the anxiety creeping up. She wished Pacey was here with her. She and Pacey had talked the night before about who the first person they wanted to share their news with. The list was short but they had significant people they couldn’t wait to share the news with.   


So while Pacey slept this morning, Joey anxiously slipped out of bed. She tugged on a pair of shorts, one of Pacey’s tee shirts, her old running sneakers, and was out the door. She tried to remain quiet so that she wouldn’t wake him up and headed off to the place she needed to be. The place where she had spent so much of her young life. Joey took another step and then slowly dropped down to her knees, her eyes filling with tears almost instantly.   


“Hi Jen,” she whispered. Her voice cracked and she had to force down the emotion that was threatening to consume her.   


Her eyes skimmed over the headstone that had her dear departed friend’s name on it. The years of her life were far too short. There was still so much life she had left to live. Mother, daughter, granddaughter, and friend were only a few adjectives that could describe the beautiful blonde she missed so dearly. There weren’t enough words in the world that could describe her friend. She’d give anything to bring her back, to have another moment with her. A tear slipped down her cheek and she quickly brushed it off her face. She had to get through the majority of this before she really let herself breakdown.   


“I miss you so much, Jen. God, I miss you. How has it been three months without you already?” Joey whispered and brushed a gentle hand over the top of her headstone. “There are so many times that I go to pick up the phone to talk to you and then remember that I can’t. Amy, she’s perfect. She’s so beautiful and so smart and so funny. She adores Pacey, which is not shocking at all. The feeling is completely mutual. He absolutely loves that little girl. We are all looking out for her and loving her with everything that we have.”   


Joey sniffled and swallowed back a lump forming. She ran a finger over her ring again and chewed on her bottom lip. There was so much she wanted to say and didn’t know how to say it.   


“Pacey and I are getting married. God, can you believe that? Pacey and I are getting married,” she chuckled softly. “Well, you would’ve believed that. You were always our biggest supporter and always pushed us to confront our feelings. To confront our fears. It was perfect and romantic and exactly the way you’d expect him to propose. Our boy did good. You’d be so proud of him.”   


Joey fumbled with the material on her shirt and blinked back the onslaught of tears. She could picture the giant smile on Jen’s face. She could feel the tiny blonde throwing her arms around her and jumping around in excitement. She could see her giving Pacey a look that said “finally”. She could hear the wedding plans already being made, with or without her.   


“There’s more,” she chuckled. “I know. Pacey and I don’t do things one at a time. I’m moving back to Capeside. Hopefully into the beach house that he lived in back in high school with Gretchen. It will be the perfect place for our family. A family that we are already working on.   


“It looks like Amy’s going to have herself a little best friend,” Joey brushed her fingers across her stomach and smiled. “I’m pregnant, Jen. In the span of forty-eight hours; I got engaged, found out I was pregnant, and made the decision to move back to Capeside. Twenty year old Joey Potter would be running for the nearest train station right now. Twenty-five year old Joey Potter is so excited and can’t wait for what’s next. The only thing that would make this even better is if you were here to celebrate it with us.”   


Joey smiled softly as she thought back to finding out she was pregnant. She thought back to the smile on Pacey’s face. To the moment her stomach fluttered with butterflies as the realization set in. To the absolutely tender kiss Pacey had given her and the tears that glistened in both of their eyes.   


_“So?” Joey asked. “Am I pregnant or not?”_  


_“You’re pregnant,” Pacey whispered. Her eyes widened almost instantly and she slowly stood up from the bed. Both of their eyes drifted towards her flat stomach and it felt like time seemed to freeze around the two of them. Then blue met brown and tears instantly glossed their eyes._  


_“I’m pregnant?” She whispered._  


_“You’re pregnant,” he nodded. The two seemed to be reading the other one, trying to figure out how the other felt, and then a giant grin filled Pacey’s face. “You’re pregnant, Jo!”_  


_“I’m pregnant!” Joey smiled wide._  


_Pacey closed the gap between the two of them and scooped her up into his arms. She giggled and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, holding him tight as he spun her around. The two were a laughing, teary mess but they wouldn’t have it any other way. When her feet were firmly planted on the ground, his hands cupped her face and their lips met in the most tender kiss she had ever experienced. Then he started to press kisses over every part of her face he could find and she clutched the back of his head._  


_“I love you, Jo. I love you so much. God, I love you so much.” Pacey pressed a kiss to her one cheek, then her other, then her forehead, and then her nose. When he pulled back to look at her, they both had tears in their eyes._  


_“I love you so much, Pace. So much,” she traced his cheekbones with her thumbs and pressed a kiss to his forehead. She watched as he dropped down to one of his knees in front of her and both his hands rested on her hips. He slowly lifted her shirt up and pressed a kiss to her bare stomach._  


_“I love you, little baby. I’m going to love you so much and I promise to always be there,” he whispered before pressing another kiss to her stomach. Joey ran her fingers through his hair and had to fight the onslaught of tears threatening her. He looked up at her and slowly stood up, brushing some tears off her face with his thumbs. “A baby, sweetheart.”_  


_“A baby and a wedding,” she whispered. “Are you ready for this?”_  


_“Bring it on,” he nodded and then crashed their lips together. The two moved as one towards the bed, fulling intending to celebrate their night._  


“She is,” Pacey’s voice startled her from her memory. She jumped slightly and turned her head, watching him walk in her direction. He had a sad smile on his face and crouched down next to her, running his hand over the back of her head. “She’s always with us, even if she’s not physically here.”   


“How did you know I was here?”   


“I had a feeling,” he whispered. Her eyes softened. He really was the person who knew her best in the world. “I could see it on your face last night when we were talking about telling people.”   


“She felt like the first person that needed to know,” she leaned into Pacey and rested her head on his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “She’d be one of my bridesmaids. She’d probably plan the entire wedding. She was supposed to be our baby’s godmother.”   


“I know sweetheart,” he held her close and heard her sniffle. “Don’t cry, Jo. Jen wouldn’t want you to cry.”   


“I miss her,” she flicked a tear off her face.   


“I miss her too,” he rested his head on top of hers. They both looked at the headstone and then looked at each other. “What do you say we go see her little mini and Jackers?”   


“I think that’s a great idea,” she nodded. Joey leaned forward to kiss the top of Jen’s headstone and then ran her hand over it. “I love you, Jen.”   


“I love you, Lindley.” Pacey kissed his fingers and then rested it on top of the headstone. The two of them stood up and he laced his fingers through hers. She swung their joined hands over her shoulders and snuggled in to his side.   


“Come on, Witter. Let’s go share our good news,” she nuzzled her face into his neck and he kissed her temple.   


“Lead the way.”   


  


  


“Just the engagement, Pace.” Joey said as they stopped outside Jack’s house. She didn’t know why but she suddenly felt nervous. It was silly because it was only Jack and she knew he was going to be excited.   


“Huh?” Pacey turned to look at her with a furrowed brow. He saw that she was twirling her ring around her finger and he knew it was quickly becoming a nervous habit. He rubbed a hand softly over her back and smiled softly at her.   


“I don’t want to tell anyone about the baby yet,” she explained. “I want to wait until we see a doctor and until I’m a little further along before we tell anyone.”   


“Okay,” he nodded in agreement. Her reasoning made a lot of sense. “I think that’s a good idea. Plus, it will be fun for us to have our own little secret.”   


“Remember that when I’m throwing up and mad at you over everything,” she smirked.   


“You’ve been mad at me over everything our entire lives, Potter. I’m used to it by now,” he smirked. She rolled her eyes and shook her head.   


“Let’s go, Witter.”   


“After you, my dear.” Pacey followed her up the porch. They knocked on the front door and then walked inside when they heard Jack call out to come in.   


“Amy, no running!” Jack called after her. The one and a half year old ran into the living room, wearing only her diaper.   


“Pay!” Amy ran up to Pacey and he instantly scooped her up. He smothered her face with kisses and she giggled loudly.   


“Hi pretty girl,” he hugged her tight as she hugged him tightly around the neck. Jack rushed into the room and sighed.   


“Amy,” he tried to look stern but they could see the twinkle of amusement in his eyes. “You need to let me get you dressed before you take off running.”   


“No,” she pouted out her bottom lip and snuggled closer to Pacey.   


“A free spirit,” Pacey smirked. “I like it.”   


“Don’t encourage her,” Doug walked into the living room. He was carrying Amy’s dress and holding her little shoes.   


“And what are you doing here so early Dougie?” Pacey lifted an amused eyebrow and looked between the two. “Did someone have a sleepover last night?”   


“Be quiet,” Doug mumbled and his cheeks reddened.   


“Aww,” Pacey mocked. “Is someone getting so flustered?”   


“Be nice,” Joey pinched his hip and he flinched.   


“Ow,” he mumbled and rubbed his hip. He looked at Amy and frowned. “Aunt Joey is a meanie.”   


“Jo,” Amy held out her arms to Joey. Joey happily accepted the toddler in her arms and pressed a kiss to her hair.   


“Oh how quickly I’ve been replaced,” Pacey pouted.   


“You get over it,” Doug laughed.   


“Oh!” Jack suddenly gasped. Everyone turned to look at him and saw him staring at Joey’s hand. She realized that her engagement ring was on full display and she blushed.   


“Surprise?” Joey giggled.   


“You two are getting married?” Jack rushed over towards Joey. Pacey quickly took Amy back before Jack lifted Joey’s hand up to inspect her hand.   


“What?” Doug widened his eyes and walked over towards his boyfriend. He looked down and the two stared at the ring. Doug whistled in appreciation and Jack nodded his approval. “Nice work, Pace.”   


“Thanks,” he laughed.   


“So, how did little brother do it?” Doug asked. Joey launched into the full story of Pacey’s proposal and walked to sit in the kitchen with them. Jack sat across from her at the kitchen table and listened with excitement and commented when necessary. Doug smiled as he made coffee for everyone. Pacey dressed Amy while Joey recounted their proposal from the previous night.   


“That’s so romantic!” Jack gushed and squeezed Joey’s hand.   


“And there’s more,” Joey said. Pacey looked over at her, surprised, and she smiled softly. “I’m moving back to Capeside!”   


“What?” Jack screeched and was practically bouncing in his chair. “You are? When? Where? What? Tell me everything!”   


“Within the next few weeks,” she said. “I made an offer on the old beach house and we are waiting to hear back.”   


“The beach house from high school?” Doug asked and then looked at his younger brother. “The one that you lived in with Gretch?”   


“That’s the one,” he nodded. “The guy who lived there moved out and it’s just been sitting there for a while.”   


“That would be pretty cool,” Doug said.   


“I knew it!” Jack exclaimed and the three of them looked surprised. He locked eyes with Joey and smiled. “I could see it on your face that day we went to the beach house. You had that sparkle in your eye. I knew it was only a matter of time before you came home.”   


Home. The word set a flutter of butterflies off in her stomach and she felt a wave of comfort overcome her. Joey’s eyes drifted over to Pacey. He was making silly faces at Amy and she was cracking up. Sensing her looking at him, Pacey looked over at his new fiancée. He flashed her a bright smile and it only solidified everything that she already knew. Pacey was her past, her present, and her future. Pacey was all she wanted, and all she needed in life.   


  


  


Pacey sat at his desk and let out a frustrated groan. After a wonderful night of celebrating a new engagement and a new baby with Joey, he was back to work and he was frustrated. He had meant to take the weekend off, but Kathy called the night before and said there were some issues he needed to attend to. Joey had been completely understanding and he figured she would spend the majority of today sleeping and editing. He looked at the picture of her sitting on his desk, a recent addition, and smiled. She was sitting on his boat, a shy smile on her face, and the wind making her hair blow all over the place. She was so beautiful and she didn’t even know how beautiful she was. She continued to take his breath away and she already helped to brighten his mood.   


Just as his mood started to improve, there was a knock at his door. He contemplated just ignoring them. He figured if he ignore it then they would just assume he was working. He heard another knock and let out a frustrated groan. He called them in and saw his hostess, Melissa, peek her head inside.   


“Mr. Witter?” She tentatively asked.   


“What’s up, Melissa?”   


“There’s someone at the bar that wants to talk to you,” she said.   


“Who?” Pacey asked.   


“He didn’t say,” she said. “Just that he wanted to speak to you.”   


“Okay,” he sighed.   


Pacey stood up and followed her outside of the office, already annoyed with wherever this conversation was going to go. His gut told him that was not a conversation that he wanted to have. He made it to the main dining area and stopped in his tracks when he saw the guest at the bar. The man turned around and they locked eyes. Old Pacey would’ve turned around and walked away. If he was feeling angry, he would’ve stormed up to the man and told him off. Straightening his back, Pacey walked in the direction of the bar and told Sean to go take a break. Adult Pacey knew that he needed to handle this situation right away.   


“Hello Pacey,” John Witter regarded his son.   


“You still drinking beer?” Pacey asked.   


“Sure,” the older man shrugged. Pacey popped open the lid of the beer bottle and slid it across the bar to his father. Pacey was certain this was the first time that his father had even stepped foot inside of his restaurant.   


“What are you doing here?”   


“I heard some news,” he said. “Some news regarding you.”   


“And what news would that be, father?” Pacey asked. He gripped the bar with his hands and leaned forward slightly, trying to keep his temper under control. He was already in a rotten mood and the appearance of his father didn’t help that. He had to remind himself to not lose his cool in his place of business in front of his staff and guests.   


“I heard you are getting married,” John took a sip of his beer and regarded his youngest child. His eyes were full of the same judgement that Pacey grew up dealing with. “Imagine mine and your mother’s surprise when we heard. Especially considering we didn’t know you were even dating anyone.”   


“I wasn’t aware you had any particular interest in what I did,” Pacey said.   


After John’s heart attack when Pacey was twenty, the two attempted to work on their relationship. It was tense but they were finally talking. Then it all fell apart once again and this time Pacey had no desire to repair it. After he had lost his job and his money and was forced to move back to Capeside, his father was quick to express his disappointment in his youngest. All the progress the two had made, was completely thrown away. Harsh words were exchanged and the two realized that they were beyond repair. Pacey realized that there was just too many years of abuse, neglect, and disappointment for him to ever have a functional relationship with his father. He had accepted this and moved forward from this. He was done hoping for his parents to love him.   


“Your mother was very upset to have to hear this from someone other than you,” John said. “You could’ve at least shown her a little respect.”   


“You mean like the respect that the two of you have always shown me?” Pacey crossed his arms and glared at his father.   


“Well, who is the woman?”   


“So you know I’m engaged but you don’t even know who I am engaged to?” Pacey asked, raising an eyebrow.   


“That is correct.”   


“It’s Joey,” he said. He saw the look of disdain on his father’s face and Pacey’s face immediately hardened. “Do you have something you’d like to say?”   


“Joey Potter? You’re marrying Joey Potter?” John asked. The disgust was clear in his father’s voice and Pacey clenched his fist, reminding himself to keep calm. “I was under the impression the two of you broke up.”   


“That’s because there’s a lot you don’t know about my life.”   


“Look-,” John started but Pacey cut him off almost immediately.   


“I don’t want to hear what you have to say and I don’t want to hear what you think. You lost the right to any opinion on my life or my choices a very long time ago. You have no right to my life or to Joey’s life. So just stay away from us and keep your opinions to yourself,” he said. Pacey went to move around the bar and then turned back to face his father before he walked away. “Now get the hell out of my restaurant and don’t come back.”   


Pacey walked back into his office, closed the door, and rested his back against it. He let his head fall back with a thud and closed his eyes. He was tired, he was frustrated, and he was ready to go home. With a glance at his watch, Pacey groaned when he realized that he still had a few more hours before he could be back with Joey.   


  


  


Joey woke up from her nap and rubbed her exhausted eyes. She reached for Pacey’s side of the bed but then remembered he had to go in to work for a few hours. She saw her bag sitting on the table and groaned when she remembered she had a manuscript to read before Monday. All she wanted was to stay in bed and sleep but there was so much to do. Joey felt a wave of nausea hit her and before she could contemplate being sick, it passed. She wondered if this was how the next few months were going to be for her. She wondered if she was in for weeks of nausea and sickness. She sure hoped not. Joey hoped that she was one of those pregnant women that never got sick, but she knew that wasn’t likely.   


Joey finally slid out of bed, in desperate need of something to drink. Padding into the kitchen, her hand reached for the coffee but then she stopped herself. She wanted to wait until she saw a doctor to know her limits on caffeine. She let out a groan when she realized she wasn’t going to be able to drink coffee as much as she’d like. It was essentially her lifeline most days but she would do it. She’d do anything to make sure her baby was healthy. She already loved her baby so much and knew there wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do for them.   


Just as she was about to reach for the juice in Pacey’s fridge, she heard her cellphone start to ring. With a frustrated groan, she walked back to the bedroom to retrieve it. Joey hoped it was Pacey. She wanted to hear his voice and complain about her lack of coffee. She quickly grabbed the phone off the night stand and flipped it open.   


“Hello?”   


“Hey Joey,” Dawson’s voice filled her ears.   


“Oh, hey Dawson. How are you?” Joey asked. She hadn’t heard from him in a few weeks and was surprised to hear from him.   


“Stressed,” he groaned.   


“Why?” She asked. Joey walked back into the kitchen and straight for the fridge.   


“We are about to start filming the second half of the season,” he explained.   


“So?” Joey asked, cradling the phone between her ear and shoulder as she opened the juice.   


“So I have to explore the Sam and Petey relationship in this second half.”   


“I repeat, so?” She poured some juice into a glass and sat at the counter. She wasn’t really sure why he was so stressed. He was doing something he loved and should have no problem with the show, considering it was about his life.   


“Joey!” Dawson complained. “How am I supposed to write about Sam and Petey? I know nothing about the ins and outs of your relationship with Pacey from high school.”   


“You know enough,” she said. She had a very good feeling about where this conversation was going to go and wanted no part of it.   


“Joey-,” he started but she cut him off immediately.   


“I am not giving you inside information,” she said.   


“Please!” Dawson whined. “I just need to know some minor details and then I can improvise from there.”   


“Dawson,” she sighed. “I’d rather not share personal details about my relationship with Pacey. Besides, I don’t think he would like that very much either.”   


“Can’t you ask him?”   


“Why don’t you ask him?” Joey countered. “If you are that insistent on it, ask him. See what he is willing to tell you.”   


“Fine,” he groaned. Joey rolled her eyes at his dramatic antics. “So, what else is new? Audrey said she was going to visit you.”   


“She was,” she said. “Speaking of sharing, what’s going on between you two?”   


“Between me and Audrey?” Dawson asked. “We’re friends.”   


“Is that all?”   


“Yes,” he said. “She’s fun to be around. She makes me laugh and is pretty easy to talk to. Life is never boring with Audrey around.”   


“That’s for sure,” Joey agreed and they both laughed.   


“What about you and Pacey?” Dawson asked. “What’s going on with you two?”   


“Actually,” she bit her lip and smiled to herself. Joey’s eyes dropped down to her engagement ring and it filled her heart with warmth. She and Pacey had decided last night that she would handle telling Dawson about their engagement. “We’re engaged.”   


“What?” Dawson’s voice was pure surprise. “You are? Since when?”   


“Like a day,” she said.   


“Congrats, Joey. I’m really happy for the two of you,” he said. Joey could hear the genuine happiness but a little something else that she couldn’t describe. Something that felt like he was finally accepting that it was final.   


“Thanks Dawson,” she said.   


“Is Pace there?” Dawson asked. “I’d like to congratulate him too.”   


“He’s at the restaurant right now,” she said. “But I’m sure you can call him there. He’d love to hear from you.”   


“I’ll do just that,” he said and then paused. “You sound really happy, Joey. I don’t think I’ve heard you this happy in a really long time.”   


“I am, Dawson. I’m really happy,” she smiled to herself.   


“Good,” he said. “You really deserve it.”   


“You do too,” she insisted.   


“I’m working on it,” he said. “I’ll get there.”   


“I know you will,” she said. The two said their goodbyes and then Joey placed the phone on the counter. She rested a hand on her flat stomach and smiled. She really and truly was happy. She hadn’t felt this happy since she jumped on the sailboat with Pacey and never looked back. It had taken her this long to finally realize that the source of her genuine happiness was always Pacey.   


  


  


“Jo?” Pacey closed the front door behind him and let out a tired sigh. He toed off his shoes, kicked them to the side, dropped his keys and wallet on the side table, and then walked off to find his fiancée.   


“In here!” Joey called from the direction of the bedroom. He grabbed a water bottle from the kitchen on the way there and then walked into the room. He stopped in his tracks and raised an amused eyebrow at the sight in front of him. Joey was standing in front of the mirror, with a pillow under her shirt, and was looking at herself sideways.   


“I know I have never been very good at math but I definitely know for a fact that you still have a few more months before you should be showing like that,” he smirked. Joey twirled around, startled to see him standing there, and yanked the pillow from her shirt with a blush immediately filling her face.   


“Shut up,” she mumbled and then tossed the pillow onto the bed.   


“I think it’s cute,” he walked over and brushed his fingers across her flat stomach. He personally couldn’t wait to see their child start to grow inside the love of his life.   


“You say that now,” she scrunched her nose. “Just wait until I’m all swollen and look like I’m hiding a beach ball.”   


“And I will still think you’re the most beautiful woman in the world,” he pressed a kiss to her forehead and she closed her eyes at the feel of his lips on her skin.   


“I already said I’d marry you, Witter. You don’t have to keep flattering me,” she teased.   


“My bad,” he stepped back and tugged his shirt out of his pants. “I keep meaning to insult you but always forget. I promise to be better.”   


“As long as you try,” she patted his chest. “So, how was your day?”   


“Horrible,” he groaned. Joey widened her eyes in surprise and sat on the edge of the bed while he undressed.   


“What happened, sweetheart?”   


“Well for one, I remember why I never wanted to allow in work romance. Our resident love birds have decided to take a break from their relationship and that means they hate each other,” he rolled his eyes and tossed his watch onto the dresser. “Then I had a stack of paperwork on my desk waiting for me. An entire set of plates shattered today. My linen delivery guy didn’t even show up, which was frustrating.”   


“I’m sorry honey,” she frowned.   


“Oh and that’s not even the worst part,” he chuckled bitterly. Joey’s frown deepened at the bitterness in his tone. “My father decided to show up at the restaurant today.”   


“What did he want?” She furrowed her brows.   


“Apparently I was disrespectful to my mother by not telling her about my engagement,” he rolled his eyes and threw his shirt into the laundry basket. Joey followed his every move and felt her heart ache for the man she loved. All these years later, and they still had this kind of effect on him. “As if the two of them have ever showed me the slightest bit of respect. All the abuse and neglect I’ve had to endure from them and they feel like they are entitled to know this.”   


“How did they even find out?”   


“I have no idea,” he shrugged. “I sure as hell wasn’t the one who told him.”   


“Were you going to?” Joey asked.   


“No,” he said. “And before you even ask, I’m not inviting them to the wedding.”   


“You’re…” she widened her eyes slightly. She wasn’t really sure how to respond to that. She didn’t think that things between them were that bad. She thought they had started to make peace. “I thought-.”   


“You thought what?” Pacey twirled around to face her and she was surprised by the frustrated look on his face. She had almost forgotten how quickly a flip switched when dealing with his dad. “That I would want my parents there on what is supposed to be the happiest day of my life so that they could ruin it?”   


“Pace,” she softened her eyes. “I thought you two had made some kind of peace? After he had that heart attack.”   


“Then I did what Pacey Witter does best in his eyes, I screwed up. I lost all my money, I lost my money and had to come crawling back to Doug,” he rested his hands on the dresser and gripped it tightly. “I proved to be the disappointment that my father always knew I would be.”   


“Pacey,” she got off the bed and walked over towards him. Joey rested one of her hands on his back and softly rubbed it. He rolled out of his neck and let out a tired sigh. She pressed a kiss to his shoulder and then rested her chin on it, looking at his tired face.   


“I’m twenty- five years old, Jo. I own my own restaurant and am getting married and am having a baby. I have done so much for my life and am so happy but he still knows exactly which buttons to push,” he stood up and looked down at her. “I’ve made peace with having no relationship with them but it would be nice to know that they aren’t always waiting for me to screw up. I’m sure he’s waiting for me to screw up our relationship again.”   


“Hey,” Joey clutched his arm and turned him to fully face her. She grabbed his face in her hands and forced him to look into her eyes. “Stop it right there. You are not going to screw up anything. It wasn’t just you in the past, we both made mistakes but we’ve learned from them. We have both grown and become different people.”   


“Jo-,”   


“No,” she looked deeply into his eyes. “I am your family. Me and our baby are your family. It’s the three of us now and forever. You are never going to be alone again and you are not a disappointment in the slightest. I am so incredibly proud of you and there are so many people that would agree with me. You have made something of your life, despite him. I need you to believe that, I need you to believe me.”   


“I do,” he nodded and pressed his forehead against hers. “I do, Jo.”   


“They missed their chance to be a part of this family. They missed their chance to get to know you and to know our baby,” she said.   


Joey traced circles around his cheeks and watched his eyes flutter shut. She wished she could take some of the pain he has carried all these years. She wished she could help carry some of his burden. She promised herself that she was always going to be the family Pacey needed and wanted. She was always going to be his rock and never let him feel alone again. Joey was going to be his strength when he didn’t feel strong enough to push forward, just like he had been for her so many times.   


“Why can’t I hate them?” He whispered and his eyes opened, tears threatening to spill. Her heart broke in that moment. “After all they’ve done and said, why is it so hard for me to hate them?”   


“Because they are your parents, no matter what. No matter what happens, they are still a part of you.”   


“I won’t ever forgive them,” he said. “No matter what, I’m done trying with them.”   


“I support whatever you decide. You make the decisions in regards to them,” she said. Joey pulled him into her arms and he buried his face in her neck, holding her close. Her fingers traced comforting circles around his back and she whispered words of love in his ear. She felt Pacey press a kiss to her neck and then stand up to look at her.   


“Then the final act of my day was a phone call from Dawson,” he sighed and ran a hand over his tired face.   


“He told me he was going to call,” she nodded. She wasn’t sure if Dawson’s phone call had improved or just added on to his bad mood. She knew that it could go either way, if she was being honest.   


“He told me you told him about the engagement,” Pacey moved to sit on the bed.   


“You’re okay with that, right?” Joey sat next to him and rested her leg against the side of his. She rubbed his knee with her own and he smiled softly at the gesture.   


“Yeah,” he shrugged. Joey knew he wasn’t mad about her saying anything. She knew he was just in a rotten mood and talking to Dawson was probably the last thing he wanted to do today. She knew how exhausting phone calls with their old friend could be, especially when he wanted to discuss the show.   


“What else did he want?” Joey asked. She wondered if Dawson had been able to tell Pacey was in a bad mood and hopefully he didn’t push the topic.   


“To discuss our high school relationship,” he sighed. “Apparently he is covering it in the second half of the season.”   


“I know,” she said. “He wanted me to give him information so he could have an idea for the script.”   


“What did you tell him?”   


“That I wasn’t interested,” she said. “I didn’t really want to share anything. He knew more than he ever should have back then and I’d like to keep the important things private.”   


“I see,” he nodded.   


“Why?” Joey raised an eyebrow. “What did you say?”   


“That he was there for our relationship and he should have enough to go off,” he said.   


“Pace,” she furrowed her brows. “He didn’t know anything about our relationship. He knew what he wanted to know.”   


“That sounds like his problem,” he shrugged. He saw the surprised look on Joey’s face and elaborated. “Jo, if he was interested in our relationship back then then it wouldn’t take a television show for him to ask questions. He’s doing this purely for ratings. I have no interest in our relationship being broadcasted on television. It’s our relationship, not the worlds.”   


“Pacey-“   


“I’m fine with him using my character. I’m fine with the storylines he’s addressed but I don’t want to share our relationship details. I like that it’s ours. Yours and mine,” he said. Pacey stood up and walked over towards the dresser. She watched as he slid on a pair of pajama pants and an old tee shirt, clearly ready to just lounge around for the rest of the night.   


“He just wants to get it right,” she said. “He wants to make sure that he does right by our relationship.”   


“Are we really about to fight about this?” Pacey asked. “Because I’ve had a terrible day and Dawson’s show is the last thing I want to fight about.”   


“I don’t want to fight either,” she said. The two fell silent and looked everywhere but at each other. Pacey felt tired and Joey wanted to say the right thing to make him feel better. Suddenly she got an idea and stood up. Joey walked over towards Pacey and tugged on his hand. “Come on.”   


“What?” He narrowed his eyes. “Where?”   


“Just come with me,” she said as she pulled him out of the bedroom.   


“Jo, we’re in our pajamas. Let’s change first,” he said. Pacey wasn’t sure where she wanted to go and he wasn’t really in the mood for a late night out.   


“No,” she shook her head. She tossed him a sweatshirt on the way out of the room and grabbed one of his for herself.   


“Do you want to tell me where we are going?” Pacey asked, following her out of the apartment. He watched as she locked the front door and then grabbed his hand, lacing their fingers together.   


“Now who is the impatient one?” Joey shot him an amused look.   


“I thought we would just stay in and maybe order a pizza and watch a movie,” he said.   


“And we will do that,” she said. “After.”   


“After what?” He pressed.   


“Just quit asking questions, Witter. Go with the flow for once,” she stuck her tongue out at him and he narrowed his eyes.   


“You win this round, Potter.”   


“Don’t I always?” She teased.   


“Cute,” he deadpanned.   


“Alright grumpy pants,” she bumped his hip with her own. “We are almost there.”   


“Grumpy pants?” He repeated, raising an amused eyebrow. “What is this, the fifth grade?”   


“I’m ignoring you until we get there or you cheer up. Whichever may come first,” she playfully glared at him.   


“Your future husband is miserable!” He protested. “It’s in the marriage contract that you must do whatever possible to make him happier.”   


“I’m pretty sure you made that rule up,” she rolled her eyes.   


“Nope,” he shook his head. “It’s there. You just didn’t look hard enough.”   


“I must have forgotten to put my glasses on that day.”   


“That must be it,” he agreed. They stopped right in front of the marina and he saw his boat, rocking away on the water. “Did you bring me here so that we can sail away together? Because if so, you are the best future wife ever.”   


“Close,” she pulled him towards the boat and then tugged him on board with her.   


“So we aren’t running away?” Pacey pouted as he joined her on the boat. “Tease.”   


“It’s my most endearing quality,” she said. She kissed his pout away before turning to move below deck, leaving him up there alone. Joey grabbed a blanket from below deck and then spread it out across the ground. She situated herself on her back and then gestured for him to do the same. Pacey followed suit and the two looked up at the sky. “We are going to look at the stars and let the rocking of the boat soothe you.”   


“You are the best future wife ever,” he pulled her into his arms. Joey rested her head on his chest and wrapped an arm around his waist. They shared another kiss and he sighed happily. “Can I tell you a secret?”   


“Of course.”   


“I miss being out on the water, Jo. I miss waking up to the sun and falling asleep to the stars. I miss having no responsibilities and just getting to be with you,” he admitted. Joey smiled into his chest and looked up into his beautiful blue eyes. “I miss when it was just the two of us and no one was there to bother us.”   


“I do too, Pace.” Joey brushed a piece of hair off his forehead and pressed a kiss to his chest. “We can always go out there again. We can hit the open seas whenever we want. Plus, I know for a fact that any baby of yours is going to love being out there.”   


“And if they don’t, I’m returning them.”   


“Pace!” Joey swatted his chest and he laughed.   


“I’m kidding,” he said and tugged her closer to him. “They could hate the water and I will still love them. I will always love them.”   


“I know you will,” she brushed her fingers across his cheek. “They are so lucky to have you as their dad.”   


“Not as lucky as they are to have you as their mom,” he insisted. She blushed and went to protest but he wouldn’t let her. “I’m the one in the bad mood. You’re not allowed to contradict me tonight.”   


“Is that how this works?”   


“That’s exactly how this works,” he nodded.   


“I love you, Pace. Good or bad, I’m in love with you. I will always be there for you and I will always be on your side,” she promised.   


“I love you too, Jo. I always will,” he leaned forward and she met him halfway.   


Their lips met, sealing their promise with a kiss. Pacey pulled back first and she rested her head on his chest. They quietly looked up at the stars and held each other tight. Joey rubbed comforting circles around his stomach and he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. He loved her and was so extra thankful that he had her on days like this. He was just thankful that he had her in general. His fingers moved to caress her stomach and he changed this thoughts. He was lucky to have both of them. His little family.   



End file.
